FORTY-SIX families living in Ulu Sawah Estate in Rantau near Seremban have expressed gratitude to the state administration for providing treated water by Syarikat Air Negri Sembilan (SAINS) supplied to their homes, thus ending a seven-decade wait for clean water.<\/p>\n
The families, who had been relying on processed river water provided by the management all these while for all their necessities, said they would no longer have to worry about water disruptions, particularly during the prolonged dry weather.<\/p>\n
P. Gemini Dass, 48, who has been living in the estate for the past four decades, thanked Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan for keeping his promise to provide the estate folks with a consistent supply of treated water.<\/p>\n
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<\/div>\n\u201cAlthough we are located so close to Seremban, we never had access to treated water supply as we were located inside the estate. Today, we will be assured that our taps won\u2019t run dry irrespective of the time of the day,\u201d said the father of three.<\/p>\n
Housewife A. Kamalam 56, was also lost for words when she saw lorries unloading huge pipes to be laid in the estate.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy eight children will no longer have to worry if there is enough water for them to take their showers or do other chores,\u201d said Kamalam.<\/p>\n
Kg Kuala Sawah Village Development and Security committee chairman Ab Mutalib Sulaiman, 47, said there had been occasions when the estate folks had to do without water due to a combination of factors.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Mentri Besar was surprised when told that there were still some families who did not have access to piped water. He then visited the estate folks and pledged to look into their problem as soon as possible,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The affected families recently held a gathering to thank Mohamad for keeping his promise.<\/p>\n
Mohamad, who is also Rantau assemblyman, said the estate was among eight that would receive treated water supply under phase one of a project to ensure all residents in the state had access to clean water.<\/p>\n
\u201cSeveral more estates have benefitted from this programme under the first phase. By the time the third phase is completed, all residents in the state will already have access to clean water,\u201d he said adding that at present, there were only some Orang Asli families and those living in faraway places who did not have piped water supply.<\/p>\n
Mohamad said there was no reason why the estate folks should not benefit from such government projects especially when they contributed significantly to the nation\u2019s economy and wellbeing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe government has already introduced the minimum wage scheme for all workers and this will also benefit estate workers who had long been complaining of insufficient wages,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He said the state authorities could not do much to provide treated water to the estates previously as it could not trespass estate land to lay the pipes.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut we engaged the estate owners this time around and they agreed to work with us for the benefit of the estate workers,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Mohamad also thanked the Federal government for the allocation given for the project through the Human Resources Ministry.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n