Guwahati man bathes with drain water to protest Jal Board’s supply shutdown

City Mayor Mrigen Sarania said the water supply may be disrupted further due to maintenance work by the Japan International Cooperation Agency

GUWAHATI

A middle-aged man in Guwahati bathed with drain water on the streets to protest the prolonged disruption in water supply across a major part of the city.

The Guwahati Metropolitan Drinking Water and Sewerage Board, also known as the Guwahati Jal Board, issued a notice on November 14 that the water supply would be interrupted from November 15-17 in areas serviced by three reservoirs — Amiya Nagar, Leechubagan, and Ramsahill. It said the shutdown was necessary to “facilitate permanent arrangements of the project involving removal of pipeline loops and to include new areas for commissioning” by the end of November.

However, the resumption of water supply was delayed by two days. Although the Jal Board claimed the supply was resumed on Wednesday (November 20, 2024), many areas continued to be without water.

Pradeep Barman, a resident of the city’s Anil Nagar locality, resorted to a novel form of protest after the water supply remained interrupted for the fifth day on November 19. He dipped a bucket in a drain outside his residence and poured the water on his head while taking a dig at the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) with an improvised parody song.

Guwahati’s water supply project is JICA-assisted.

“We have been forced to use drain water for our daily needs. I request the Assam government to take action on JICA or life will be hell in Smart City Guwahati,” he said.

Responding to his protest, an affected resident named Deep Deka said: “Some people in Guwahati have been buying water for the last two months because connections were broken when tarmac was laid on the road. But no steps were taken even after complaints.”

Meanwhile, Guwahati Mayor Mrigen Sarania said the prolonged water crisis was due to some crucial upgrades in the pipelines.

“JICA has been working for the past three days in various parts of the city to address growing issues such as frequent pipe bursts and other water-related problems. Due to the ongoing maintenance, water supply will remain disrupted for at least another two days until the work is completed,” he told journalists on Tuesday.

Published - November 20, 2024 01:49 pm IST