Thiruvananthapuram: The disruption of water supply in the capital city has triggered a political row as UDF started a protest on Monday seeking mayor Arya Rajendran's resignation. The opposition led by Congress accused the corporation of failing to find alternative ways to supply water to the city dwellers. Over five lakh people were affected by the four-day-long water supply disruption in the city. UDF demanded that Arya Rajendran should step down from the post of mayor over the corporation's lapses in finding an alternative mechanism to ensure water supply to the people.
UDF councillors will stage a dharna in front of the corporation office on Monday. UDF convener MM Hassan will inaugurate the protest.
“The mayor should step down as taking moral responsibility for the crisis. Strict action should be taken against the officials who are responsible for the issue. We have raised the water crisis in many council meetings. But no action was taken over our repeated demands to address the issue,” alleged the opposition councillors.
Apart from UDF, BJP councillors are also planning to protest over the water supply disruption. Kerala Students Union (KSU), the students' outfit of the Congress also demanded the mayor's resignation after accusing the corporation of being responsible for interrupting the studies of lakhs of students. Thiruvananthapuram district collector has declared a holiday for all educational institutions in the corporation limit due to the water crisis. On Monday morning, KSU activists staged a protest march and barged into the corporation office.
Water supply to 44 wards of the corporation was disrupted for four days due to the realignment of pipelines as part of the track doubling work on the Thiruvananthapuram-Nagercoil railway line. The water supply was restored on Sunday night.
