Baripada: Women of Naharpada under Baripada municipality limits Monday detained an SDO and a junior engineer of the public health department and force-fed them muddy water from a tube-well in protest against the administration’s delay in providing piped water connection in the area.
The engineers — SDO Prakash Chandra Das and JE Kailash Chandra Tudu — were also forced to stand under the scorching sun for over an hour. Later, they were rescued by police.
According to reports, the department began work in March to provide piped water connection facility in the area near Station Bandha of the town. While the laying of pipes is yet to be completed, bills are being raised in the names of the consumers who had applied for connections in advance.
The department also issued them notices to clear the payment.
Irked by the misdeed, the irate mob first gheraoed the sub-division office and later forcibly took the engineers to their area to see the reality for themselves.
Residents made them stand under sun for over an hour and offered them muddy water obtained from a local tube-well when the duo felt thirsty. Later, IIC Tilottama Rout along with other police officials rescued the two and tried to pacify the angry people. They won’t release the engineers until the connections are given, locals said.
Later, police mediated and the engineers submitted a written declaration promising to start water supply by Wednesday following which they were released by the people.
More than 50 families of Naharpada which comes under ward-11 have been fighting water scarcity for a long time. Though the work had began in March it is yet to see the light of the day. Moreover, many applicants were charged with `242 each for using the piped water, Bijaya Chand, Kanakalata Sahoo, Ashok Panda and Jayanti Badhei said. Residents of the ward took the step protesting the wrongdoings of the department.
When contacted, SDO Das said people would be given connections very soon. The bills might have been issued due to some error in computer system, he clarified. JE Tudu said the work was delayed due to negligence of the contractor.
However, locals alleged the tender of the work was awarded to an unskilled contractor which has caused the inordinate delay. It is learnt that the contractor has been replaced with a fresh one Monday.
It is not the case of ward-11, many people of the town receive bills even as they don’t have any water connection and the officials often remain tightlipped over the issue, a report said. PNN