Nashik : Corporators from the city cutting across party lines took out a morcha on Monday to register their protest against Maharashtra Government’s decision to release water for Jayakwadi dam in Marathwada from Nashik. The march was taken out from Mayor’s bungalow to Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) building. It was led by Mayor Ashok Murtadak and Corporators from all political parties represented in the civic body took part in the rally.
The Corporators said releasing water into the dam, a major source of water for drought-hit Marathwada, from upstream areas of North Maharashtra will adversely affect farmers and residents of Nashik district and the city.
Nashik also received inadequate rainfall during this year’s monsoon and present water stock will have to be saved for drinking purposes till next June, civic sources said. Water Resources Minister Girish Mahajan, at a recent meeting in Mumbai, decided to release water from Nashik dams into Jayakwadi, which caters to the needs of Aurangabad, Beed, Jalana and Parbhani districts of the Marathwada region.
Mahajan, who is also the Guardian Minister of Nashik, had earlier faced protests over the water issue from local politicians, including Shiv Sena MLAs, when he came to Collectorate to attend a meeting.
Meanwhile, acute water shortage gripping Latur in Marathwada today led a group of residents of this town to stage a novel protest: bathing on the steps of the municipal corporation headquarters in the city. The protest was spontaneous and no political party or social organisation was associated with it, claimed one of the social activists from Latur participating in it.
“Several people of Latur, fed up with getting municipal water supply once or twice a month, staged this protest to draw the authorities’ attention to the acute water shortage,” the activist said.
