313 पटक हेरिएको 
Rautahat: In Ward No. 5 of Rajpur Municipality, Rautahat, handpumps that had never dried up before completely ran dry during this year’s dry season. The village faced an acute drinking water crisis.
In the same area, continuous rainfall for three days in the month of Ashoj caused flooding. Due to inundation, all handpumps were submerged up to half their height. Even during the floods, the drinking water crisis persisted. Some residents survived by drinking turbid water.
However, some residents of Ward No. 5 were neither affected by flooding nor faced water shortages during the drought, because they had a permanent alternative drinking water supplied through a piped system.
Rajpur Municipality Mayor Dr. Mohammad Rajik Alam stated that areas where drinking water has been supplied through the Rajpur Drinking Water and Sanitation Management Board have not faced any problems during droughts, floods, or inundation.
Fifty-year-old Rampati Devi of Rajpur-5 says, “During floods, handpump water used to become muddy, and during droughts the pumps would dry up and we suffered a lot. Now water keeps coming from the tap; life has become much more convenient.”
The Rajpur Drinking Water and Sanitation Management Board, established three years ago, has expanded the piped water system to around 1,500 households.
The board was formed in 2079 BS under the Alternative Management Model project, implemented in partnership between Oxfam and the Rural Development Centre (RDC).
After the formation of the board, all drinking water and sanitation user committees operating in Rajpur Municipality have been integrated into it. Currently, all drinking water and sanitation-related work within the municipality is being carried out solely through the Drinking Water and Sanitation Management Board.
Mayor Alam emphasizes that a service can only be considered reliable if water can be supplied continuously even during floods, inundation, and droughts. “For this, we are collecting groundwater in overhead tanks and distributing it,” he explains.
According to the mayor, under the board there is one overhead tank in Ward No. 2 and another in Ward No. 4.
Solar-powered motors have been installed in the drinking water system, ensuring uninterrupted water supply even during power outages. Water extracted from boreholes is tested for quality and made safe through filtration systems before distribution.
Although climate risks are increasing, solutions are not impossible. If local governments take responsibility for providing safe water to their citizens, adopt appropriate technology, and plan with a long-term vision, they can cope with both floods and droughts. The Rajpur Drinking Water Board has set an example of this approach.
Residents of households connected to the piped water system say, “Whether flood or drought, there is only one solution the piped water system.”
