Youth Congress Gheraos Municipality Over Water Crisis In Dhar

Dhar (Madhya Pradesh): The District Youth Congress staged a protest on Thursday against the supply of dirty and irregular drinking water in the city. Party workers marched from Lalbagh to the Municipality office, raised slogans against the municipal administration and laid siege to the premises.

Women activists carried earthen pots on their heads, while youth workers displayed bottles filled with murky and foul-smelling water to highlight their grievances. Protesters also brought bangles intended for Municipality CMO Vishwa Pratap Singh and later broke them symbolically outside the office. They also smashed earthen pots during the demonstration.

Youth Congress leaders alleged that locals receive water only once every five to six days and that supply lasts for just 15 to 20 minutes. They claimed the water is yellowish, muddy and foul-smelling.

Following protest, Congress delegation submitted a memorandum addressed to the District Collector Rajeev Rajan Meena. The memorandum alleged that the municipality had failed to provide clean drinking water and had not adequately repaired aging pipelines or improved the water treatment plant.

Tension briefly arose when a fire brigade vehicle sprayed water inside the municipality premises, causing commotion among protesters. The situation later restored to normalcy.

CMO Vishwa Pratap Singh rejected the allegations, stating that murky water had appeared temporarily due to low water levels in the source pond.

He said the municipality was continuously treating the water and currently supplying clean water. Youth Congress district president Rohit Kamdar warned of a larger agitation if conditions do not improve within 10 days.