Meeting to review water supply scheme postponed at 11th hour

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

Citizens have also strongly criticised the silence of elected representatives regarding the city's water crisis. Even leaders who used to frequently review the new water supply scheme before the Lok Sabha elections are now unwilling to utter a single word. As the water issue started to heat up, former union Minister of State Dr. Bhagwat Karad suddenly decided to review the water supply scheme at the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Municipal Corporation (CSMC) on Monday. As per the scheduled programme, the meeting was supposed to start at 1 pm, but it had not begun by 2.30 pm. Finally, it was announced that the meeting would be held next week.

Uddhav Sena has launched an agitation in the city over the water crisis under the slogan “Labaḍanno, Pāṇī Dyā” (“You deceivers, give us water”). Their protest has begun to gain support from common citizens across various localities. Until recently, municipal officials, local ruling leaders, and officials from the Maharashtra Jeevan Pradhikaran (MJP) were confidently claiming that the city would receive an additional 200 MLD of water by the end of May. However, that claim has proven to be false.

Just two days ago, Divisional Commissioner Dilip Gawade reviewed the entire project and found that numerous works were still pending. It was also revealed that these works would take at least another year to complete. This has sparked public criticism, with citizens now questioning why the city's 18 lakh residents were given false promises.

To ease the growing tension surrounding the water crisis, a review meeting of the water supply system was scheduled for Monday at 1 pm under the leadership of Dr Karad. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was holding a video conference at the time, during which senior officials, along with the municipal corporation administrator, had arrived at the Divisional Commissioner’s office.

The meeting began as scheduled. However, after an hour and a half, the Municipal Corporation’s Public Relations Section announced that the meeting would now be held next week.