Piped Water Supply Now A Reality For This Inaccessible Village In Odisha’s Keonjhar

Keonjhar: In an example of the district administration’s determination to execute a well-designed plan to ensure welfare of people, remote and inaccessible Pidhapokhri village is now able to get piped water supply.

Located atop Malangtoli Hills in Joda block, Pidhapokhri with a population of around 200 households has been facing acute water scarcity since long. The district administration used to supply water in tankers twice a day, which barely met the minimum needs of people in the village, leading to multiple development deprivations.

With the initiative of district collector Ashish Thakare, a ‘Household Piped Water Supply Project’ for Pidhapokhari was sanctioned through District Mineral Foundation at a cost of ₹2.63 crore in 2018.

Under the project, water sourced from a natural spring is lifted to an overhead tank at a height of more than 300 feet using a 10 HP solar pump. It is then supplied to households through individual tap connections after filtration.

Due to the hilly terrain, construction of the infrastructure and laying the pipelines posed major challenges. However, the administration could successfully complete the project due to meticulous planning and execution under Rural Water supply and sanitation (RWSS) program which comes under Panchayati Raj  and Drinking Water department.

Today, people of Pidapokhari are assured daily supply of adequate and safe water at their doorsteps.