Installed in 2016 at rly station, these are lying locked due to non-payment of power bills Bathinda, August 22 Water vending machines installed at the city railway station were found non-operational allegedly due to non-payment of power bills. Passengers were forced to purchase mineral water from kiosks as hot water was coming out of the majority of taps at the station. An operator at a kiosk claimed that all machines installed at the railway station had been lying locked since morning as their power bills were yet to be paid. He said they had written to senior officials of the Ambala Division over the matter. Santosh, a passenger who was waiting for a train to Hanumangarh at platform no. 1, was disappointed after she found one such kiosk lying locked with nobody inside it. With an empty bottle in hand, she had to purchase two new bottles of mineral water at a cost of Rs 15 each. She told The Tribune that she had no option as hot water was coming out of almost all taps. It would also lead to plastic pollution as recycling of plastic bottles had become an uphilll task. Around eight machines were installed at the railway station in September 2016 to provide RO purified drinking water to passengers. The Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation, a subsidiary of the Indian Railways, takes care of them. A passenger can buy 300 ml water at Rs 1, 500 ml at Rs 3, one litre at Rs 5, two litres at Rs 8 and 5 litres at Rs 20. One can also purchase empty containers from these kiosks along with potable water. Sources at the railway station said the IRCTC had to bear the financial brunt of operating these machines due to high electricity and labour charges. Meanwhile, Station Superintendent Ramswaroop Meena was not available for his comments over the issue.

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