JAJARKOT: Without access to safe drinking water, more than 5,000 households in Jajarkot district headquarters Khalanga are forced to consume contaminated water from local rivers.

The Drinking Water and Sanitation Coordination Committee said that the total 5,292 households in the district are forced to drink polluted water.

As a result, locals often suffer from various water-borne diseases.

According to the District Public Health Office, local people suffer from various water-related diseases like scabies, diarrhoea, dysentery, typhoid and fever among others.

Out of around 27,000 families, only around 3,000 have access to water facility, while the rest are forced to take an average of one-hour walk to fetch water from nearby water sources, said Chief at the District Drinking Water and Sanitation Sub Division Office Maheshi Mahato.

He blamed difficult terrain and sparse settlements for difficulties to provide safe drinking water facility to the villages.