Pic: In Chikka Budur village, situated in the Devdurg taluk of Raichur, the defunct RO unit serves as a representation of such facilities across Kalyana KarnatakaKoppal: Of the 4,105 RO units installed by the govt across 7 districts of Kalyana Karnataka, 1,438 were decommissioned due to poor maintenance.Due to the high concentrations of naturally occurring arsenic and fluoride in water across many districts, it is deemed unsafe for human consumption. With only 2,667 operational units at present, there are increasing concerns regarding the ongoing dependence on contaminated water sources.The state govt installed 4,105 pure water units in 7 districts of Kalyana Karnataka and entrusted the responsibility of maintaining them to the gram panchayats and, in some places, to contractors. However, due to a lack of maintenance, 1,438 units were decommissioned, and units worth crores of rupees are rusting.Kalaburagi district has the highest number of decommissioned units. Out of the 510 units set up in the district, only 132 units are operational, and 378 units were shut down due to a lack of maintenance.Out of the 674 units set up in Koppal district, 281 units have been shut down, while 250 in Vijayanagara, 247 in Yadgir, 155 in Raichur, 79 in Bidar, and 48 in Ballari have been shut down due to a lack of maintenance, and the machines are rusting.Even the taps of the Jal Jeevan Mission are not supplying water in most parts of Kalyana Karnataka. Various reasons, including lack of water sources, improper implementation, unscientific work, and lack of funds, have made this project a failure.“The shortage of clean drinking water is serious in rural areas, and people forced to consume contaminated water are contracting diseases like dengue, diarrhoea, typhoid, and hepatitis A. There were deaths due to diarrhoea in some districts. To prevent this, the govt should provide clean water,” says Vijayakumar Hanagi, a social activist from Koppal.According to Kalaburagi ZP CEO Bhanwar Singh Meena, priority is being given to the repair of defunct units in the rural parts of the district, where the number of inoperative RO units is the highest. “Minor repairs are conducted by the gram panchayat. For expenses over Rs 1 lakh, a proposal is submitted to the govt,” he mentions.In recent years, many people fell ill in various districts of Kalyana Karnataka due to the consumption of contaminated water. In this context, the high court, considering a public interest litigation filed by Ramesh L Nayak, took the govt to task and issued a notice.In spite of this, the 1,438 defective RO units in Kalyana Karnataka indicate that the govt is yet to take action.
