DANG: Locals of Rapti Rural Municipality-5 in Dang district are compelled to drink polluted water.

"The water source is contaminated with sewage and fallen leaves. We are using polluted water. As a result, we are suffering from various health problems like diarrhea, especially during monsoon," said local resident Yashoda BK.

Another local Thaman Singh Gaha complained that despite their repeated call to concerned authority, the problem has not been addressed yet.

Meanwhile, the District Water Supply and Sanitation Division Office of the district expressed ignorance about the ongoing problem. "We will do the needful if we are informed about it," said an official.

The  rural municipality chairman Numananda Subedi pledged to take initiatives to provide safe drinking water to the villages.

The only water source in the villages — Punkhola and Karangekot — sheltering 140 households are in dire need of conservation.

The water resource get contaminated when it rains during the monsoon.

It takes few hours to reach the water source which often dry up during the winter, said a local.