Kolkata: The Mamata Banerjee government will conduct health audit of all overhead water reservoirs across the state.
The move comes after an overhead reservoir came crashing down at Sarenga in Bankura on January 22.
"All executive engineers, superintending engineers or junior engineers involved in the upkeep of overhead water reservoirs have been asked to furnish a report within 15 days after conducting health audit of all of the reservoirs. If we find any irregularities after the study we will rope in experts from IIT Kharagpur or Jadavpur University and take measures accordingly," said Saumen Mahapatra, Public Health Engineering (PHE) minister at the state Assembly.
The minister said that the agency that was responsible for the construction of the damaged water reservoir will reconstruct it and the DPR for the same will be prepared by the state government.
Sources in the department said that the caving-in took place during the period in which the agency involved in its construction was responsible for the reservoir's maintenance.
"We have already initiated a probe and the executive engineer and superintending engineer associated with the maintenance of the damaged reservoir have been sent on compulsory waiting. We will also interrogate retired engineers associated with this reservoir, if needed, during the course of probe," said Mahapatra.
The department has made arrangements for a pump machine for supplying water through the existing dedicated pipeline, so that the residents do not face any dearth of water.
The project was taken up in 2012 and was completed in 2016 by the PHE department under the special Backward Region Grant Fund of the Centre. A sum of Rs 165 crore was spent on the project.
The reservoir had a capacity to store 700 cubic meters of water and was responsible for supplying water to over a dozen villages in and around Sarenga, which is known as one of the most arid and dry zones in Bengal.