160-km drive for water

26 June 2009

It is Saturday evening in Pasakha, Phuentsholing, and everyone is planning for a relaxed Sunday. But for Naku Dukpa, it is time to go to Shaba Tomja in Paro where his family of four lives.

Naku is an employee of Tashi Beverages. Every Saturday, he drives 160 km to Paro to do an important task. On Sunday, he has to fetch enough water for his family to last for a week.

About six households in Shaba Tomja have suffered from an acute water shortage for the last seven years. Most residents collect water from nearby sources while a few others make do with the river water. Still a few others have dug borewells.

On Sunday morning, Naku drives his Tata pick-up to GREF colony, about half a kilometre from his house. He fills up 50 20-litre jerry cans. That water would see his family through for a week.

Naku Dukpa settled in Shaba Tomja last year. For a few months, he managed to get water from the Agriculture Machinery Centre (AMC), about a kilometre from his house. Then, the caretaker did not allow him to collect water saying his boss had instructed him to do so. It is when he turned to GREF colony.

Naku said driving along the Thimphu-Phuentsholing highway during summer was risky. “I have to risk my life to keep my family going,” he said.

Pelden, a farmer from Shaba Tomja, said, it was a tedious job to collect water after a day’s work. She said only the rich people could afford pumps. Every evening she fetches water from the GREF camp for her family of nine. She said the people were not kind all the time. Sometimes, people would deliberately put off the pump and say the machine was not functioning. She and her elder sister carry water in bamboo baskets.

Tenzin Wangdi, an employee of AMC, is another victim of the water shortage. Each day, he carries 120 litres of water from his office, which is three kilometres away.

Villagers said they had put up a group application to the authorities concerned to address the problem. But there needs to be at least 15 households for a water supply system to be put in place. Naku Dukpa said if the government is concerned about budget, we are ready to bear 40 percent of the cost. “But we need water,” he said.

By Rabi C. Dahal

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