Coimbatore: Protesting against the Chikkadasampalayam Panchayat near Mettupalayam for not ensuring proper supply of drinking water, the public laid siege to the Regional Development Office and also staged a protest with empty pots.
Coimbatore: Protesting against the Chikkadasampalayam Panchayat near Mettupalayam for not ensuring proper supply of drinking water, the public laid siege to the Regional Development Office and also staged a protest with empty pots.
More than 50,000 people live in the Chikkadasampalayam Panchayat area which is located near the Mettupalayam Municipality. Wards 11 and 12 in the area have been suffering due to irregular water supply for the past few months.
It has been reported that steps were not taken to address the issue even after repeated requests to the concerned Panchayat Administration and the Regional Development Officer. The residents of Chikkadasampalayam, Ward 11 and 12, Cheran Nagar, Cheran Nagar 2, Payapanur and Ethiraj Nagar protested at the Regional Development Office in Karamadai with empty pots alleging that it had been 24 days since proper drinking water was supplied to them.
There was a public outcry with women protesters decorating empty pots symbolising last rituals for the dead and letting out a cry of lament. More than 300 people, including women staged a sit-in protest in front of the Regional Development Office for almost two hours, demanding water supply.
Meanwhile, the Regional Development Officer and officers of TWAD negotiated with the protesters and assured them that they would take immediate action. However, there was continued commotion in the area with the protesters refusing to withdraw their protest until the authorities assured them that their promise of solving the water supply issue will be given to the public in writing.