Page 71 - 9 teachers social book 9 @ 2077 ctp_Neat

Problems

In urban areas a pipeline is installed to supply water but due to overpopulation water
supply is not sufficient. People use contaminated water mixed with pollutants such as
sewage, drainage, wastes, etc. In rural areas people have to walk long about 2/3 hours
to fetch mere a bucket-full of water. In this way more time and energy is consumed.
In the Himalayan region, all the land area is covered with snow. So people make
snow melt and drink. In hills, people drink directly from the sources. These sources
are not safe for drinking.

Similarly, in the Terai people drink underground water which contains Arsenic.
Economically, strong people may buy jar or tanker water but poor people suffer a lot
due to lack of poor drinking water supply or contaminated water. Thus, it becomes
ironical to herald Nepal as the second richest country in water resources in the world.
The major problems of drinking water in Nepal is given as follows in points:

Shortage of sufficient drinking water with the increasing households
Irregular supply of water with impurity
Lack of awareness of people and ignorance on its importance
Lack of effective plans and policies, supervision and implementation.
Pollution in the sources of water and arsenic mixed in underground water in
the Terai
Expensive in installation of pipelines in hills where houses are scattered
Solutions

New big projects should be launched like Melamchi Drinking Water to supply
pure drinking water sufficiently.
Supply of drinking water should be regular.
Filter plant should be kept to purify and supply water.
Public participation should be increased.
Consumers must be alert on water leakage and environmental pollution.
Strong planning should be done with proper implementation.
Local resources should be preserved.
Easy access to WASH (Water Sanitation and Hygiene) in every remote areas.

Efforts of the Government

The government has set the target to supply safe drinking to 83.6% people and
sanitation to 62%. Some reform policies of the government are as follows:
To provide drinking water and sanitation facility to all the citizens
To improve drinking water supply, purity and services gradually
To encourage rainwater collection where there is no regular source of water

71 Dynamic Social Studies - Book IX