STATE TIMES NEWS
KATHUA : The Committee on Public Accounts (PAC) on Tuesday conducted on-spot inspection to assess the present status of improvement/ augmentation and extension of water supply scheme at village Mehtabpur, Kathua.
The committee headed by MLA, Mohammad Akbar Lone comprises of Legislators Javaid Mustafa Mir, Shamim Firdous, Abdul Rashid Dar, Pawan Gupta, Rajeev Jasrotia, Jeevan Lal, Mohammad Yousuf Bhat, Mushtaq Shah besides MLC, Ghulam Nabi Monga.
Chief Engineer PHE Jammu, Ashok Gandotra informed the committee members initially the scheme was started in the year 2001-02 at an estimated cost of Rs 62.30 lakh and revised in the year 2005-06 at a revised cost of Rs 1.32 crore to provide benefit to 6,115 souls. He further informed that due to certain constraints the WSS could not meet the desired outcome. He said lack of manpower, unscheduled power cuts, lack of required feeder were few reasons for its under performance .
The committee members give valuable suggestions for improving and augmenting the WSS.
They stressed on making the scheme functional within shortest span of time so that public money spent on it bring benefit to the people. The PAC directed the Chief Engineer Jammu to devise a comprehensive plan to remove all the bottlenecks to extend the benefits to uncovered habitations before 31st of August.
Later, the PAC interacted with the villagers and assured them that the District Administration will arrange tanker water supply to them till the infra at Mehtabur becomes fully functional. They also directed for installing hand pumps in remote locations where there is no provision of potable water.
DC Kathua, Ramesh Kumar, SE Hydraulic Kathua, Ashok Sharma, Officials of PHE, besides prominent villagers were present on the occasion.
