Improve your memory: Jhansi corporator offers almonds to Jal Nigam official over water crisis

Jhansi: Suggesting that the dry fruits improve memory, a corporator on Monday offered almonds to a Jal Nigam official as part of a protest over the severe water crisis affecting parts of the old city areas in Jhansi.The incident took place during the heated Nagar Nigam house meeting in Jhansi, days after a man looking for missing files offered the same to a woman officer in Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, so that she could get her memory back.The protest unfolded during discussions on poor civic amenities, with corporators strongly raising issues related to damaged roads, drainage problems, encroachment and, most prominently, the shortage of potable water. The meeting was attended by mayor Behari Lal Arya, municipal commissioner Akanksha Rana and Sadar MLA Ravi Sharma.Corporators said residents in densely populated areas of the old city were still struggling to get clean drinking water despite repeated official claims that pipeline work had been completed in most parts of Jhansi. The issue dominated the proceedings as members questioned the gap between official figures and ground reality.Executive engineer of Jal Nigam Mukesh Pal, responding to the criticism, presented data on pipeline laying and said a major portion of the city had already been covered. He assured the house that the remaining areas would also be connected soon.Objecting to these claims, Ward 33 corporator Rahul Kushwaha walked to the dais and offered almonds to Pal, suggesting the official needed help remembering the correct figures. Kushwaha alleged that the water supply project targeted for completion in 2022 remained unfinished. He further claimed that even in areas receiving supply, the water was dirty and unfit for household use.Kushwaha accused officials of repeatedly misleading both the house and the public by presenting inconsistent figures on household water connections. Encroachment and the resulting traffic congestion also emerged as major concerns during the meeting.