eDITORIAL-Millions drowning in water crisis

8 August 2014 07:02 pm Views - 2046

While millions of people in at least 11 districts are going through a wilderness experience due to the lack of fresh water for drinking, washing, cooking and cultivation, the people in some Colombo suburbs were also severely affected over the weekend.

The National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) had announced a 36-hour water cut on Saturday and Sunday for the installation of new water pipe lines. The water cut was to end at 9.00 p.m. on Sunday, but even by Tuesday evening, residents of Nugegoda, Kotte and other areas were still without water even for basic toilet and washing purposes. Many residents said they had no option but to buy five-litre bottles of water from supermarkets at Rs.150 each, but even those stocks ran out before noon on Monday. Some residents said they were even compelled to buy about 100 one-litre bottles of water for household purposes.

While the NWSDB does have to start new projects to cater to the massive housing schemes and other development programmes and the restoration of water supplies might be delayed to high-elevation areas, the people have a right to ask for high efficiency and priority in the supply of water, which is essential for life. The NWSDB should have used high technology methods and additional skilled staff to ensure that the water supply was resumed at the promised time. Students who began their GCE A/L examination on Monday said they were left high and dry and had to go for the examination without brushing their teeth, washing the face or using the toilet. When residents called the NWSDB, they were told they might get water later but no time or assurance was given.

Meanwhile, the Agriculture Department said on Monday, millions of people were affected by the prolonged drought, while paddy and other crops planted on thousands of acres of land were withering. Adding to the woes were forest fires. In Ruwanwella yesterday some 600 acres of land were completely destroyed by forest fires. The Meteorological Department said the North-East monsoon rains were not expected until October and as a result it might be an enforced dry fast for thousands of families, meaning they would have little or no food and water.

This is a shame if not a disgrace for a tropical country blessed with six major rivers, many canals and streams besides the ancient irrigation marvels known a ‘wewas’. Residents said  animals were drinking, bathing or dying in those wewas, most of which have been allowed to fall apart.

When the Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge Government was re-elected in 2004, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), which was given the Agriculture Ministry launched a mission to restore some 10,000 wewas. If that had been done, there would have been no water crisis in the 11 districts today. But the JVP quit the govermnent due to differences of opinion on the ethnic conflict and the project to restore 10,000 wewas went down the drain.

The wewas, like agriculture, are part of our civilization that once made Sri Lanka the Rice Bowl of Asia. Instead of allowing transnational agrochemical or seed corporations to run or ruin our agriculture, the Government needs to take direct control of this vital sector for the common good of all and for future generations.

As the Daily Mirror stressed in an Editorial last week, the Government also needs to ensure that TNCs, do not plunder the groundwater resources of our country. The Indian Government recently cancelled the licence of a transnational soft drink giant for over-extracting groundwater at its bottling plant in Uttar Pradesh. But an Indian beverages company is allegedly over-extracting Sri Lanka’s groundwater -- three litres of water for one litre of the beverage. The Sri Lankan Government needs to intervene immediately to save Sri Lanka’s fresh water resources amid reports there might be water wars in the coming decades.