Totu residents block highway to protest water scarcity

SHIMLA : Residents of Totu, a suburb in chief minister Virbhadra Singh’s assembly segment Shimla rural, blocked national highway 205 for over half an hour on Friday to protest against water scarcity in their area.

Residents complained that they get water supply only after a week or so. “Sometimes water is supplied on alternate days and that too for only around half an hour,” they rued.

This is not the first such protest. Almost a year ago, residents of the suburb had gathered at the same place to raise the problem of water shortage. “Every year, we spend the summer months protesting against water scarcity but to no avail,” said Satish Sharma, a Totu resident.

Ishwar Thakur, another resident, said, “I have been living in Totu for a long time. Over the years, the water crisis has only got acute. We wait for water supply for hours on, but the taps remain dry,” he said, adding, “Sometimes water comes for 30 minutes to 40 minutes but that too after many days.”

Mahesh Sharma, a student, said, “Most of our time is spent queuing up at handpump for water. It takes us more than an hour to go and come back. When should we study?”

Meanwhile, the Shimla police had to intervene to open the national highway for vehicular traffic. Additional SP BD Negi spoke to protesters and opened the road. Totu falls under Shimla municipal corporation limit but water supply in the area is the mandate of IPH department.

Locals say that both authorities pass the buck over each other when it comes to resolving the water crisis.