JOIN USYoung activist makes 225km foot march to seek drinking water for hometown
Angry over the government's alleged failure to provide clean drinking water to each household in his hometown Seppa, Sol Dodum, a young activist in Arunachal Pradesh has completed a 225km-long foot march from Seppa to the state capital Itanagar on Monday.
Dodum started his march from Seppa, the district headquarters of East Kameng district, situated on the bank of the Kameng river, on April 15 and reached Itanagar on Monday evening. He later sat on a protest demonstration in Itanagar seeking steps from the state government to finish work on the drinking water projects for providing safe drinking water to each household.
He alleged that corrupt practices by officials of the public health engineering department delayed work on water supply projects at Seppa increasing people's struggle for drinking water.
"All I want from the government is to end the people's ordeal in managing clean drinking water. At a time the government is talking about providing piped drinking water to every household, many in Seppa are struggling for water," he said.
"As my pleas fell on deaf ears of the public health engineering department, I decided to take this democratic and peaceful means to invite government's attention to the corrupt practices delaying work in drinking water projects in Seppa," he told reporters at Itanagar, after finishing his foot march.
As Dodum started his foot march on April 15, many joined him on his way towards Itanagar and shared their struggle for drinking water in the hill state.
Seppa town has a population of about 20,000.
Dodum alleged that work on three water supply projects - a water treatment plant at Niyari Welly model village, the Kuchi Nallah water supply project and a water treatment plant at Seppa township - had remained incomplete despite the sanction of funds by the government.
"Benefit of government funds don't reach people due to corrupt practices by some officials," he further said.
The protest march comes at a time the Centre is highlighting Jal Jeevan Mission, its flagship scheme to provide piped drinking water to each household by 2024 when the country goes for Lok Sabha elections. BJP government in Arunachal Pradesh, however, has set a target to implement the central scheme by 2023.