Sanawad (Madhya Pradesh): A severe drinking water crisis has gripped eight villages in the Barwaha region after the Choral River dried up completely due to scanty rainfall, leaving thousands of residents, livestock and wildlife struggling for survival amid soaring summer temperatures.
Villagers of Aroda, Kundiya, Bekaliya, Tharwar, Barjhar, Ramkulla, Jhigdi and Rupabedi are facing acute shortages as hand pumps and wells have also gone dry following a sharp decline in groundwater levels.
Residents said they are finding it increasingly difficult to arrange even basic drinking water for daily use, while cattle and wild animals inhabiting forests along the Choral River belt are desperately searching for water sources. Locals fear that if urgent measures are not taken, the crisis could trigger large-scale deaths of animals and severe hardship for villagers in the coming days.
Taking serious cognisance of the worsening situation, Barwaha MLA Sachin Birla has written an urgent letter to Chief Minister Mohan Yadav seeking immediate release of water into the Choral River from PS-3 of the Gambhir Project located at Choral village. Birla stated that water is traditionally released from the project every summer to sustain downstream villages, livestock and wildlife, but the process has been delayed this year.
The MLA has also written to the executive engineer of OSP Canal Division, Dhamnod and the Chief Engineer of the Lower Narmada Project, Indore, warning that any further delay could cause irreparable damage. Meanwhile, anger is mounting among affected villagers, who have warned of protests if immediate intervention is not ensured by the administration.
