Angry residents of Vidyapatinagar under ward 2 of Ranchi Municipal Corporation (RMC) on Thursday alleged the civic body had turned a deaf ear to their pleas to clear the massive waterlogging on the road linking their colony with Gandhinagar.
The residential colony on Kanke Road, 1.5km from the CM’s residence, where around 10,000 people stay, faces waterlogging on the main road almost round the year.
Over 50 residents, who had joined the protest with spades, also singled out a family for allegedly blocking a kutcha nullah, which they claimed worsened the waterlogging.
Even ward councillor Gandura Oraon joined the protest and agreed with the others in blaming Rajesh Chaurasia and his family members as “troublemakers who repeatedly block the nullah”. The protesters removed the debris from the nullah.
Ward councillor Oraon said that in August he had persuaded the RMC health wing to make a temporary arrangement to clear waterlogging. “But the Chaurasias assaulted RMC staff who dug the nullah, and the RMC staff filed an FIR. Yesterday (Wednesday), the family blocked the nullah. Today (Thursday), the man again abused us,” Oraon said.
The councillor said that waterlogging presented serious health hazards for thousands here. “People blame me, but for the past two years I have raised the issue at every RMC meeting. This is the only approach road for Vidyapatinagar residents to visit Gandhinagar where offices, schools and a hospital are located. This stretch is low-lying and sewage stands on vacant land. Without drainage, dirty water floods the road,” Oraon rued.
Chaurasia claimed his house faced constant seepage due to the nullah dug adjoining his house. “My house is getting ruined. This temporary nullah feels like a conspiracy to torture us. We are peace-loving people,” he said. “For a permanent solution, either make connecting drains on both flanks of the road or in the middle of the road.”
Residents said they were fed up with the Chaurasias and the RMC and would protest at the RMC office on Friday.