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Water is considered a free gift of nature and providing water supply to the people was therefore considered to be Social Service. The situation has since changed considerably. Per capita use of water has increased, sizes of human settlements are increasing at faster rates and uses of water have increased considerably. As the reliable sources of water are getting exhausted, there is a need to go in for additional sources of supplies. Irregular and inadequate rains, as also the pollution of surface waters being caused by discharges of domestic wastes including waste due to Mining and Industrial Activities have rendered the problem of meeting rising drinking water demands, increasingly difficult and expensive. No doubt, water is still the free gift of nature but when it is desired that water, as is available in nature, should be made safe for drinking and transported to the points of consumption, it becomes a Commodity i.e. it acquires economic value. The task of providing water supply to the people of the state is, therefore, becoming increasingly challenging.
In Meghalaya, Water Supply & Sanitation Sector is under the control and supervision of the Public Health Engineering Department. Provision of sufficient and safe drinking water supply in both Rural & Urban Areas of the State including provision of Rural & Urban Sanitation facilities are the primary objectives of the PHED in this sector. PHED has all along shouldered the responsibility of project design, project execution, project management and/or O&M services of all water supply system in the State.
Under Rural Water Supply Programme, Rural Water Supply Schemes are being implemented with fund made available by the State Government under State Plan as well as fund made available by Government of India (GoI), Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation (MoDWS). Some schemes are also implemented with fund made available under Non-Lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR) by Ministry of Development of Northeastern Region (MoDONER) and also under Assistance to State for Development of Export Infrastructures and Allied Activities Scheme (ASIDE).
Under Urban Water Supply Programme, Urban Water Supply Schemes are being implemented with fund made available by State Government under State Plan and also with fund made available by GoI under different programmes like NLCPR by MoDONER and Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) by Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD). Augmentation of Tura Phase I & II is also now under implementation with fund made available under 13th Finance Commission. While the GSWSP (Phase I & II) was implemented with fund made available under State Plan and also with fund made available under NLCPR by MoDONER for construction of Dam, GSWSP (Phase-III) is being implemented with fund made available under JNNURM by MoUD.
Under PHED, Meghalaya has seen significant strides in terms of progress in Sanitation coverage during last three years. It has initiated community led approaches to trigger the behavioural changes among the communities leading to creation of Open Defecation Free (ODF) Villages across various Districts of the State. This has resulted in many villages attaining Open Defecation Free status and improving the quality of infrastructures like household and institutional toilets in the villages. While only 11 villages received Nirmal Gram Puraskar in 2008, about 365 villages have bagged NGP for 2011. Meghalaya has occupied third position in the country in terms of number of NGPs in 2011.
Although the progress in the sanitation has picked up in the State, the progress/achievements vary among the Districts and there is some way to go, before the State become ODF. PHED is also taking initiatives for Implementation of Solid Liquid Waste Management (SLWM) on these ODF Villages. State PHED is also taking up the initiatives for Implementation of Sewerage Project for the Urban Areas of the State to curb pollution of water bodies.
Under the Support Organization, PHED is also taking up support activities like awareness campaign, testing of water samples and conducting of training at the grass root level including workshops etc.
Issued in Public interest by
Public Health Engineering Department, Meghalaya, Shillong.
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