Residents hold 'Matka Phod' protest over water crisis in Delhi
Amid the ongoing water crisis in the national capital, residents -- particularly women -- staged a 'Matka Phod' (break pots) protest to vent their anger and desperation against the city government.
IANS
Jun 11, 2024 11:46
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New Delhi, June 11 (IANS) Amid the ongoing water crisis in the national capital, residents -- particularly women -- staged a 'Matka Phod' (break pots) protest to vent their anger and desperation against the city government.
The demonstration was led by newly-elected South Delhi MP Ramvir Singh Bidhuri and former MLA Brahm Singh Tanwar. Blaming the AAP government for the water crisis and chaos in several parts of Delhi, they demanded the resignations of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Water Minister Atishi Marlena.
For days, many parts of Delhi have been struggling with a severe shortage of water, leading to conflicts and quarrels among residents. In some neighbourhoods, people could be seen engaging in fracas to fill their water containers.
Residents gathered at the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) filling station in Chhatarpur and raised slogans against the DJB and the Chief Minister.
The protest, organised by BJP leaders, began in Chhatarpur and culminated at the water-filling station. A significant number of women participated in it, carrying pots on their heads and breaking them while raising slogans.
MP Bidhuri slammed the Delhi government's handling of the water crisis and said, "The people of Delhi are desperate for every drop of water. In the past decade, Arvind Kejriwal's government has neither made any arrangements for drinking water nor worked on water conservation, leading to the severe water crisis today. Kejriwal has not taken any steps to increase water production in the past decade."
"They had promised to bring water from Himachal Pradesh and Muradnagar. Along with this, it was promised that rainwater would be harvested by renting the farmers' land on Yamuna river banks, but no work was carried out," he added.
The BJP leader also appealed to Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena to pay a visit to the areas experiencing severe water shortages to get a first-hand account of the "chaotic" situation.
--IANS
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