Mokokchung Town Lanur Telongjem (MTLT) has served a 45-day ultimatum on the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) Mokokchung division to take immediate necessary actions to ensure supply of regular drinking water at Mokokchung town.
In an ultimatum addressed to the executive engineer PHED Mokokchung division, the MTLT president Imkummeren Jamir, General Secretary Lanu Pongen and MTLT Grievances Cell Convener Aolong Imchen said that citizens of Mokokchung town have been suffering due to scarcity of potable drinking water for the past many years.
Over the years, the MTLT said it has raised the issue with the department and also other competent authorities on several occasions, but its concerns and queries have been met with excuses after excuses.
MTLT stated that there were many families in different colonies, who have PHED water pipe connection, were compelled to buy water even during the monsoon season.
According to MTLT, there were about 2500 families in the town, who were aggrieved because of non-supply of water by the department.
If the department cannot supply water even to those 2500 families having pipelines, the MTLT questioned whether the department could supply water to other families who were yet to have a pipe connection. “Most ironically, the families are charged the regular maintenance fees every month,” MTLT said.
Stating that PHED was one of the most important government departments dealing with public health, the MTLT said that department, therefore, should not and would “not be allowed to be a department of excuses only.”
Asserting that it would not entertain any excuses on the matter, MTLT has demanded that the department ameliorate suffering of the people due to want of regular drinking water within stipulated period.