Govt College faces water shortage

CHITRAL, Aug 7: The students of Government College Chitral are facing an acute shortage of drinking water. Talking to this correspondent, a number of students said the college campus was supplied water through the electric water pump which remained inoperative for the last three months due to the low voltage of electricity. Kashif Hayat, a senior student, said the college had three student hostels, one bachelor staff hostel, a number of residential quarters and a number of academic blocks all of which are supplied water from the water tank filled by the electric motors. Criticizing the Peshawar Electric Supply Company (PESCO), he said that despite their repeated requests and protests, it failed to ensure smooth power supply to the campus where more than three thousands students from across the district are enrolled half of which resided in the hostels. He said that the students have no option but to consume the contaminated water from the nearby stream and river which carries a great density of silt as it is in high flood. He said that the state of cleanliness is deplorable in the college hostels due to the shortage of water to be used in the toilets and wash rooms. Another student, Rahmat Khan, said that the students were not able to perform their prayers of five times a day as they find no water available for making ablution for the prayers. Rahmat Ilahi, a former union nazim of Ayun, present in the college offices for the admission of his son, said that outbreak of diseases was imminent in the college campus as its hygienic condition can not be maintained without water. He said that the problem of water shortage in the college belied the tall claims of the PTI government in the province which boasted of taking steps for promotion of education.–Zahiruddin  ]]>