Agartala, 3rd July 2026: Even as India celebrates rapid development and digital transformation, residents of the remote Praja Bahadur Molsom Para under Nonachhara ADC Village in Mungiakami Block of Teliamura Subdivision in Khowai district continue to struggle for one of life’s most basic necessities—safe drinking water.
Nearly eight decades after Independence, villagers still depend entirely on untreated water collected from mountain streams and hillside trickles for drinking, cooking, and other household needs.
Every morning, men, women, elderly residents, and children trek through difficult terrain carrying buckets and pitchers to fetch water. During the monsoon, the streams become heavily contaminated with mud, leaves, and other debris, yet families have no alternative source. Many are unable to boil the water due to financial constraints and lack of resources.
According to local residents, the prolonged use of contaminated water has resulted in recurring outbreaks of waterborne diseases, including diarrhoea, dysentery, and gastrointestinal infections. Children and elderly people are said to be the worst affected. Access to healthcare remains a major challenge, with villagers forced to travel long distances for treatment, often beyond their financial means.
Residents alleged that they have repeatedly submitted appeals and memoranda to the administration and public representatives seeking a permanent drinking water supply. However, despite repeated assurances over the years, no sustainable solution has been implemented.
“We do not seek luxury or grand promises. We only want safe drinking water so that our children do not fall sick,” a villager said, expressing the community’s frustration.
The situation has raised serious questions about the reach of development in remote tribal areas. While infrastructure and welfare initiatives continue to expand across the country, villagers say access to clean drinking water—one of the most fundamental human needs—remains beyond their reach.
The residents have appealed to the state government and the concerned departments to take immediate steps to provide a permanent and safe drinking water supply to the village, hoping that their decades-long struggle will finally come to an end.
