Residents block road as taps run dry in Bhiwani

Deepender Deswal

Bhiwani, June 13

The acute shortage of drinking water has turned into a major problem in Bhiwani as the residents of Bank Colony blocked the Bhiwani-Hisar road on the Paluwas gate chowk to raise their concerns in the town today. This is third such incident in the town this week.

The residents of Ward Nos. 10 and 11 gathered at the chowk and blocked the Bhiwani-Hisar road. The blockade resulted in a long queue of vehicles on the road as people got stuck in the jam for around an hour in the scorching heat.

Protesters say that the water crisis has deepened in the town during the summer season. “The acute shortage of potable water in the town has aggravated the problems of the locals these days. We have also raised the demand before the officials of district administration. Today, we have to come out on the road to protest and raise our demands,” they said.

Ajay Sangwan, a local, said despite repeated reminders and requests, the officials concerned of the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) continued to ignore their concerns. “The locals have run out of patience and have thus decided to block the road to highlight the hardship,” he said.

Municipal Councillor Ajay Singh said inequitable distribution of water and lack of proper rationing had aggravated the crisis during this season. He blamed the local officials for the problem.

Later, PHED Junior Engineer (JE) Kunal and Umed reached the spot with the police and assured the protesters of prompt redress of their grievances. After assurance by the JE, the residents removed the blockade. However, the protesters threatened to embark on agitation and stage bigger demonstrations if the problem was not resolved.

Meanwhile, BJP MP from Bhiwani-Mahendragarh Dharambir Singh has directed the district officials in Bhiwani to ensure that 70 to 100 litres of drinking water per person is supplied daily. He also instructed them to redress the water supply-related problems of the entire town within next three days.

Convener of the Yuva Kalyan Sanghthan, Kamal Singh Pradhan, said the drinking water crisis was deepening day by day in the district. He said political representatives of the ruling party and opposition parties should raise the issue so that the problem could be permanently resolved.

Pradhan said residents were being forced to purchase water from private tank operators, who charged nearly Rs 500 per tanker. “If the problem persists, we will be forced to stage a protest with farmer organisations and various social organisations at the district headquarters,” he said.