Siliguri, 30th May: Siliguri is grappling with the ongoing crisis of safe drinking water after the Siliguri Municipal Corporation (SMC) put a halt to the city-wide water supply. Residents are seen lining up in front of shops and water distribution points to obtain drinking water.
According to reports, Siliguri Mayor Gautam Deb has issued a warning claiming that the water flowing through the public taps is unfit for drinking. This stemmed after the detection of a significant fluctuation in the Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) levels in the Mahananda River. Although the water can be used for other purposes, it is harmful for consumption. Significantly, the residents will dwell in the current predicament until the supply of fresh water from the Teesta River on June 2.
Meanwhile, to ease the suffering of the people, the SMC has arranged for a daily distribution of 1 lakh drinking water pouches throughout the different wards. The plan has organized the distribution of 20,000 pouches per borough. The initiative commenced on Thursday when people were seen gathered in crowd to obtain clean drinking water.