Amid rising concern over illegal lifting of water from rivers and lakes using pump sets, Mandya Deputy Commissioner Kumar on Monday directed officials to crack down on unauthorised water extraction even as drinking water is being supplied through private borewells in 15 villages facing scarcity in the district.

Presiding over a meeting of the District Disaster Management Authority in Mandya on Monday, Dr. Kumar said illegal pumping of water from rivers, lakes and other waterbodies was unlawful and was worsening the drinking water crisis in several areas.

He instructed tahsildars, Taluk Panchayat Executive Officers, CESC officials and police personnel to immediately visit riverbank locations and disconnect electricity supply to unauthorised pump sets.

Officials informed the meeting that drinking water is currently being supplied through private borewells in 15 villages, while tanker supply has been arranged in two villages. Dr. Kumar directed the officials to compulsorily visit severely affected villages, assess the ground situation and resolve issues on priority.

Dr. Kumar also instructed officials to monitor borewell yield levels and ensure there is no shortage of drinking water till the end of summer. He told tahsildars, Taluk Panchayat Executive Officers and Rural Drinking Water Supply Department officials to act swiftly so that no public complaints arise on water scarcity.

He asked the officials to take immediate measures wherever required as there was no shortage of funds for drinking water management.

The Deputy Commissioner also directed authorities to inspect the functioning of water purification units and regularly test water quality. “The district had sufficient fodder availability for up to 40 weeks,” Dr. Kumar added.

Additional Deputy Commissioner Shivanandamurthy, Executive Engineer of Rural Drinking Water and Sanitation Division N.G. Pramod Kumar, Joint Director of Agriculture Ashok, District Urban Development Cell Planning Director T.N. Narasimhamurthy, Deputy Director of Animal Husbandry Shivalingayya and other officials attended the meeting.