Struggle for water continues in Delhi's slums even today, Congress said- 'This issue is limited to election speeches'

News Topical, Digital Desk : The capital Delhi is one of those few cities not only in the country but also in the world which are considered to be leading in terms of development standards. But the truth is that despite being the capital of the country and a developed city, the people here are struggling with the problem of water which is a daily necessity and the basis of life, not for one or two years but for a long time. 

This is nothing less than an irony for Delhi and its government, which is failing to solve the problems faced by Delhiites for years and that too when it is not summer season. Especially in slum areas, the situation of basic needs like water is very worrying. Where every morning, getting water becomes a new struggle for lakhs of families. This problem is not just of water, but a challenge of life and survival.

A lot of money is spent on water

The latest surveys by Greenpeace and COHAS show that a large number of poor families have to spend about 15 percent of their monthly income on drinking water alone. When the average monthly income is Rs 6 to 10 thousand, this amount directly affects their needs like kitchen, medicine and children's education. A woman says, "Sometimes I have to think whether to buy milk for the children or drinking water."

Long queues, many problems

Most slum dwellers are either forced to buy expensive water from private water suppliers, or depend on the erratic service of government tankers and water ATMs. Sometimes it is common to wait in line for hours to fill water, disrupting both people's working hours and children's school time. 

Both government data and independent surveys confirm that 34% of households depend on private suppliers, 29% get water from tankers, 21% from water ATMs, 14% from submersibles and 2% borrow water from neighbours.

Government promises are proving to be hollow

The Delhi government had promised to install 3,000 new water ATMs in 2025, but till June only 20 were installed in the city, and that too not in the settlements where the need was the greatest. Wherever the machines have been installed, people have complained of malfunctions, irregularities and not getting free water. Now Delhi Congress has directly attacked the current BJP and the former Aam Aadmi Party over this water problem.

Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee President Devendra Yadav said that the allegations of Delhi Congress regarding water crisis in Delhi have been refuted by Greenpeace India's water audit which has revealed shocking figures on water supply in Delhi. In the last 11 years, the previous Aam Aadmi Party and the current BJP government have completely failed in providing water supply in proportion to the population growth.

Election promises and ground reality

He said that one out of every three people in Delhi's slums is either dependent on a private water supplier or lives on irregular supply of government tankers, which come barely once or twice a week. On the rest of the days, people stand in queues for hours, sometimes they don't even get clean drinking water. He said that this revelation has come to light in a survey conducted on more than 500 houses in 12 slums of Delhi.

Devendra Yadav said that water audit was conducted in many colonies including Shakur Basti, Savda Ghevra, Daya Basti, Chuna Bhatti, Khajan Basti, BIW Colony, Seemapuri, Sundar Nagri, Lohar Basti, Sangam Vihar ragpickers colony, Raghubir Nagar JJ Colony and Kusum Pur Pahari. He said that 200 families in Mansarovar Park have to spend 60 lakh rupees annually to buy drinking water, which can be called an extremely serious situation.

Water promise is limited to election speeches- Congress

Congress alleges that both BJP and Aam Aadmi Party kept the promise of providing water to every household limited to speeches only. In the current situation, more than half of Delhi is dependent on private suppliers and tankers, which not only ruins the budget of the poor but also has a deep impact on education and health.

Aimed at AAP-BJP

Becoming aggressive on the present and previous governments, Devendra Yadav said that the Kejriwal government has drowned the Delhi Jal Board, which was making profit during the 15 years of Congress rule, in a debt of 63000 crores, while the BJP's Rekha Gupta government, instead of doing something to rescue the Delhi Jal Board from debt and ensure adequate water supply to the people of Delhi, is just making excuses and focusing on future announcements instead of the present.

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