Water demand : officials gheraoed

 

COOCH BEHAR, July 16: Agitated villagers gheraoed a team of public health engineering (PHE) personnel at Shikarpur in Tufanganj today. Later, after getting assurance of regular water supply the locals set the PHE men free.

 

It was learnt that a team of PHE personnel including a senior official Mr Nityahari Basak went to Shikarpur village under Tufanganj-I block today to examine the problems of water supply in that village. Seeing them the aggrieved villagers gheraoed the team members and started demonstrating against the poor state of water supply. They alleged that the water supply project was launched there about twenty years ago but it failed to supply pure drinking water to the villagers concerned. Soon after launching of the project they got muddy water for a few days and later it stopped functioning. Since then the project is lying as a defunct one, the villagers alleged.

 

PHE sources claimed that they had handed over the project to Cooch Behar Zilla Parishad about ten years ago. Today a team of PHE personnel went to the village following a request from the CZP to examine the problems when the villagers gheraoed them. On the otherhand, CZP sabhadhipati Mr Jnanendra Chandra Chanda said the project was never handed over to them and they never asked the PHE to send any team to examine the matter. He however said that the CZP is trying to improve the situation. Already an Rs 20-lakh plan was submitted to the higher authorities to make the project a viable one, he added.

 

A local BJP leader Mr Akshoy Das said they had to gherao the officials because the villagers were suffering for years without the promised pure drinking water. He warned that they would have to launch a massive movement if the authorities fail to supply water to the village any longer. []