WASA failures draw JS committee flak

Parliament body blasts its bottled water project
The parliamentary standing committee on government enterprises yesterday expressed anguish and dissatisfaction over the service programmes of the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA). The committee observed that the bottled water project was undertaken during the period of the caretaker government to serve a vested interest group.
The committee also asked the people concerned to identify the persons behind it and take action against them. Besides, the committee suggested handing over of the bottled water project of WASA to the private sector.
The standing committee made the observation at its meeting held at the Jatiya Sangsad (JS) Bhaban with its chairman Dr Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir in the chair.
Briefing reporters after the meeting, the chairman of the standing committee said that the WASA took the bottled water project during the period of the caretaker government to serve the purpose of a vested group, and it was initiated unjustifiably.
He said that many private sector enterprises could embark on such a project and the committee has suggested handing over the WASA bottled water scheme to the private sector in future. 
Dr Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir said WASA has failed to supply drinking water to the low-income group and slum dwellers in Dhaka and so there was no need for setting up the bottled water project.
For this reason, he said, the committee has recommended effective initiatives from WASA for supply of pure drinking water and a developed sewerage system — not the bottled water project.
The committee chairman said it was detected after survey that the overhead tanks installed in many areas were ineffective from the technical point of view and there were corruption and irregularities in their installation.
Dr Alamgir said the committee asked the WASA authorities to take action against those responsible upon investigation.
It was also observed by the standing committee that the WASA has failed to supply enough water to the city people. More than 20 per cent of the city-dwellers could not be brought under its sewerage system, while the programmes of WASA were not satisfactory in terms of relieving the city from water logging during the rainy season.
It was informed at the meeting that of the total demand of 205 crore litres of water in the city per day, WASA could supply only 176 crore litres on an average per day pumping water with 490 deep tube wells and four water treatment plants leaving 29 crore litres as deficit in supply in the city.
The WASA would install 21 more deep tube wells and install a 3.4 megawatt gas-powered generator at Syedabad Water Treatment Plant to enhance water supply in the city.
Despite its initiative, the parliamentary standing committee observed that its effort was inadequate compared to the persisting problem in the city.
Dr Alamgir said the committee has advised WASA to install tube wells in different places to supply pure drinking water to the floating working class people, if required. He said for two reasons, WASA could not come up with proper services to the citizens, first, there is no proper guideline from the government and second, serious irregularities in its management. Dr Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir said the committee also suggested making Dhaka WASA more effective removing the drawbacks inherited from the past.
The meeting was also attended by Dr TIM Fazle Rabbi Chowdhury, Dhirendra Chandra Debnath, Biren Shikdar, Mainuddin Khan Badal, SK Abu Baker, Bazlul Huq Harun, Zainul Abedin Faruque and Amena Ahmed.

Courtesy of The Independent