PANCHTHAR, MARCH 21

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba today inaugurated the 'Angna Mauwa Greater Pumping Drinking Water Project' based in Mauwa of Tumbewa Rural Municipality in Panchthar.

The prime minister inaugurated the project by releasing water from a tap at Indrani Secondary School. The project is expected to benefit 1,600 households at wards 1, 2, and 3 in Tumbewa.

On the occasion, the PM expressed hope that the project would contribute to ensuring citizens' right of access to clean drinking water guaranteed by the constitution and thus achieving sustainable development goals.

'It is the responsibility of the government to provide people with clean drinking water and sanitation facility,' the PM said, admitting that smooth water supply in urban and rural settlements was yet to be ensured. 'Drinking water management for people is still a far cry,' he said, underscoring the need to focus on the construction of river-based small and medium-scale water projects at the local levels to address the issue.

Stating that the government was doing its best to provide 99 per cent population with clean drinking water facility by the end of the 15th plan (2019-20 to 2023-24), he said the restoration of water projects damaged by off-season rains was the current priority of the government.

Stating that the project to conserve water sources in hilly areas had started, Minister of Water Supply Umakanta Chaudhary stressed the need to waive electricity tariffs on lifting and pumping water projects.

Started in 2018, the project that cost over Rs 452 million is expected to benefit over 8,000 local people.

The water is released into seven tanks at various areas at Mauwa hill, 1,336 metres above sea level. For this, an 11 kV electricity transmission line has been constructed along 23 kilometres. Similarly, another transmission line has also been built.

The water is pumped at 10.97 litres per second into a tank set up at Mauwa bazaar, said Suresh Acharya, secretary of the water supply ministry.

The project aims to benefit around 1,604 households. The pipelines have been expanded up to around 900 households, said Surat Lal Chaudhary, chief of the Federal Water Supply and Sewerage Management Project, Ilam.

A version of this article appears in the print on March 22, 2022, of The Himalayan Times