Govt will make entire investment to provide drinking water supply: Minister Yadav

Tansen (Palpa), July 26: Minister for Water Supply, Pradeep Yadav, has shared that there would be 100 per cent investment of the government in drinking water being provided to the citizens.

Addressing the 10th annual general meeting of the Tansen Drinking Water Consumers’ Committee at Tansen of Palpa on Saturday, Minister Yadav mentioned that a certain percentage of tax being imposed on drinking water for the citizens would not be levied.

“The tax being imposed on lifting drinking water under the ‘people’s water, government’s investment concept’ will now be levied. We have made arrangements that the federal government will bear 85 per cent of the investment while the province or local government will share 15 per cent,” he opined.

Minister Yadav argued that the provision was scrapped since drinking water was the people’s one of the fundamental rights and the government would bear the entire cost of this. “The ministry is effortful to effectively employ 42,000 consumer groups nationwide. We are working in close collaboration with the consumer groups,” he added.

Minister Yadav reiterated that it was the government’s sole responsibility to provide safe and accessible drinking water to the citizens. Drinking water supply and sanitation are not only the primary need of the people but a fundamental pillar for sustainable development, he added. Conservation of water sources is a key issue at present in the context of the drying up of water sources due to climate change and erratic climatic conditions.

He also promised to provide a budget for the construction of water tanks with the capacity to store 5 million liters of water in Tansen. Member of Parliament Thakur Gaire and Lumbini Province Assembly Member Bir Bahadur Rana also shared their efforts to address the drinking crisis in Tansen.