For the past 12 years, nearly 3,000 residents of Araichan and Malhipur villages and some colonies on the outskirts of Doraha town have been forced to live in the midst of a lake of sewer water formed by the discharge of the town that has no proper drainage system.

Despite a campaign by residents to stop the inflow of the discharge over the years, the water collected in this area has contaminated groundwater. Reeling under the spread of various diseases, villagers say their life has become hell.

From boycotting various elections to knocking at the doors of the Punjab State Human Rights Commission (PHRC), the residents have tried everything to move the authorities, but to no avail. They have even complained to the Ludhiana Administration, the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) and the Doraha MC, but there seems to be no respite for them.

The residents claim that while many among them have already fallen prey to water-borne diseases a number of times, the rest are apprehending and outbreak. As many as 20 acres of two villages, including Malhipur and Araichan, Araichan Colony and Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar are under sewer discharge. The situation worsens during the monsoon when water floods their houses.

The health of 3,000-odd residents is at stake as the tubewell supplying potable water to the area is also surrounded by this water. Diseases like gastroenteritis, jaundice and cholera have already gripped many residents.

Claiming that the filthy water had also flooded the playground meant for children of neighbouring areas, the residents claimed that the MC had refused to act on their complaints.

When a Tribune team reached the area on Friday a resident said, “There is no solution for this problem. We have got many news items published in this regard, but nothing ever happened”.

Mr Sukhwinder Singh, a member of the Mohalla Sudhar Committee, said many residents had contracted diseases like gastroenteritis due to the contamination of drinking water in the past also. He added that it was difficult to bear the stench in the colonies.

Some residents drawing water from hand pumps complained that they were getting yellow water, which they could not drink without boiling. “Even the clothes do not look clean after washing. The white clothes turn pale after some time. If the water is doing this to our clothes what will it do to our system?” asked an anguished woman, a resident of Araichan Colony.

Mr Surjit Singh, Executive Officer, Municipal Council, Doraha, said the MC had decided to throw the water in a drain passing through the village. He said the work would be completed by April 15 under a project worth Rs 10 lakh. He added that tenders had already been invited for the project.