Eight-day water shortage hits Chitral town areas after pipeline damage
CHITRAL (APP): Residents of several neighbourhoods in Chitral town have been facing an acute shortage of clean drinking water for the past eight consecutive days following damage to a six-inch water supply pipeline during construction work in Singoor.
Local elders Shahzada Siraj Ulmulk and Gul Rehman Chitrali told the media that the water supply line serving Gankorini, Balach and Singoor was damaged by an excavator allegedly operated by a person carrying out house construction in the area.
They said the incident had disrupted the water supply to a large number of households, leaving residents struggling to meet their daily drinking water needs.
Despite the passage of more than a week, the Water Supply Unit and the local administration have reportedly failed to carry out a proper repair of the damaged pipeline, further aggravating the difficulties faced by the affected communities.
Expressing serious concern over the authorities’ response, Shahzada Siraj said that residents had repeatedly approached the concerned officials for restoration of the water supply but their complaints had so far yielded no tangible results.
He also shared photographs of what he described as an inadequate repair attempt, showing a tree branch inserted into the damaged pipeline instead of undertaking a proper technical repair.
The temporary arrangement, he said, had failed to restore the water supply, while the inserted branch had also started deteriorating, raising further concerns about the handling of the issue.
The prolonged disruption has caused considerable hardship for families, who are compelled to make alternative arrangements to obtain drinking water for their daily needs.
The affected residents questioned the inability of the concerned authorities to repair a six-inch pipeline despite the availability of more than a week and urged the district administration to take immediate notice of the situation.
They demanded an emergency technical intervention by the Water Supply Unit to ensure proper restoration of the damaged pipeline and uninterrupted provision of clean drinking water to Gankorini, Balach and Singoor without further delay.
