Odisha village women beat utensils in protest demanding drinking water

Summer is yet to arrive, but water scarcity has started to pinch the residents of Tarabha in the Sabarnapur district even though a drinking water project is already there in the village.

Upset over water shortage, hundreds of women from Sargaj village carrying pots and buckets staged protests at the block office on Saturday. They beat utensils in unison, shouting for immediate steps for drinking water. 

As per reports, people of the village with over 2000 population are struggling to get enough water from the drinking water project. For the last one year, water supply to households has not been adequate enough to meet their requirements, they alleged.

According to the villagers, though they had drawn the attention of the authorities of the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation (RWSS) to the water shortage, no steps have been taken to sort out the issue.

They pointed out that they finally trooped to the block office to highlight their plight. 

Rabindra Kumar Sahu, an engineer of the RWSS, Subarnapur, later held talks with the agitating women and assured them that immediate steps would be taken for a smooth supply of water.  

Sahu said, “The work will be started for a smooth supply of water, but it will take at least 12 to 15 days.”