Hyderabad, June 05: After recovering from jaundice and paying off steep medical bills, Shahina Nafeeza Begum, a resident of Chadarghat area of the Old City, decided she had enough. Petitioning the consumer court against the Water Board for supplying contaminated water to several areas in the Old City for over four months in the summer, Shahina has demanded a compensation of Rs 5 lakh.
Along with Shahina, 50 Old City residents, vexed with the Water Board, have filed a joint petition with the consumer court demanding compensation. The residents in their petition on June 1, demanded a hefty compensation of Rs 3 lakh to Rs 5 lakh each from the authorities. The board will have to pay up to Rs 2.30 crore if the ruling is in favour of the residents.
The petitioners mostly residents of Ghansi Bazar, Hussaini Alam, Purana Pul, Dhoolpet and Chadarghat areas claimed that the board had been neglecting the contaminated water problem for long. The problem persists in some areas in the Old City, the petitioners said, adding they had also developed skin allergies due to contaminated water.
“The board officials have not been sending even the water tankers (dial-a-tanker) to our area, in spite of repeated requests,” the petition said.
The residents’ counsel, Megha Rani Agarwal who had earlier filed a petition with the State Human Right’s Commission (SHRC) stated that the Water Board is liable to pay compensation to the residents. “A compensation has to be paid as the government and the board are responsible for the mental and physical trauma faced by the residents,” said Agarwal. The case in SHRC is scheduled to be heard on June 8.
One of the petitioners stated that they have been fighting for safe drinking water for several years. “Seven months ago there was a water pipeline disruption at Puranapul. The authorities did not repair the pipeline for about one month. This time around we have decided to bring the officials to book,” said Md Miyan, an electrician and resident of Dhoolpet.
–Agencies