MAPUSA
Upset over erratic water supply in Chapora and Vagator since the last six months, angry locals staged a protest by blocking the main road on Wednesday and also threatened to boycott the upcoming assembly elections if their issue was not resolved.
The protest was led by panch members Surendra Govekar, Sheetal Dabholkar and former sarpanch Suhasini Govekar.
They complained that erratic water supply had been an issue for many years, but it had intensified over the last six months.
The agitators said an underground tank was recently constructed and water department officials had promised to resolve the water supply problem within eight days. They, however, claimed that the problem continued to persist even after 10 days, provoking locals of Chapora and Vagator to protest on the road.
"The government had announced free water, but people in Chapora and Vagator do not even receive water. Despite the water shortage, I was handed a water bill of Rs 1,104 last month and Rs 8,404 for the current month. Do meters installed by department run on air or something," asked panch Surendra Govekar.
When contacted, Siolim MLA Vinod Palyekar said the water tank had been built to resolve the water shortage issue and yet, locals had been deprived of water.
“There is a lack of coordination between the Water Supply Department and Water Resources Department, which is harming locals and not the officials. Hence, locals have to protest as a weapon," said Palyekar.
Meanwhile, PWD (water supply) Executive Engineer Shambhu Malvankar visited the site later in the afternoon and listened to the grievances of the protestors. He assured to personally inspect the water tank himself on Thursday, after which locals suspended their protest.
