22 June, Dang. The residents of Ghorahi sub-metropolitan city-18 have been facing the problem of drinking water for years. There are more drinking water problems here in the summer season.
The source of water brought from a distance of eight kilometers becomes a problem when it dries up as the heat rises. Saraswati Vick, a resident of Upper Ghordaura, says that after the water dries up in the stream near his house, he brings water from Dharampani, 45 minutes away.
He said that drinking water is a problem every day. Vick said, ‘As the summer heats up, there is a water crisis in the village.’ He said that even though it was downhill to get water, he had to walk uphill for an hour and a half while coming back.
Prajan Bhandari, a resident of Jhinigaon in Ghordaura, says that there is a problem of drinking water with the onset of rain. He says that it takes two hours to wait for a turn to fill the water in the same stream. He said, ‘When the water stopped coming to the village, we used to go to a place called Big Pandhera near the house, but now that the water has dried up, now I have come to a bad place.’
Locals say that they have to stand in line for hours when filling water in the light and because the stream dries up without a turn, most of them come to fill water at night.
Shobha Adhikari, a 57-year-old resident of Ghorahi sub-metropolitan city-18, Ghordaura, says that the villagers have to drink water from the tap at Dharampani, which is about an hour away.
He said that with the water crisis in the village, Ghordaura residents now have to wake up at 2-3 in the morning to get drinking water.
He said, ‘In old age, there is a problem in going up and down to fill water. The water brought from another village has dried up. So now we have to walk for an hour from the house to the stream down the river.’
Bharatmani Aryal, the ward president of Ghorahi sub-metropolitan city-18, said that the water supply scheme is currently being worked on and the problem will be solved by the next year.
He said that since the locals of Ghordaura have been facing water problem for years, it will be solved in the long term. 70 households in Ghordaura have to carry water from a single stream. Children’s education is also affected due to the water problem.
