CH NEWS, Kalaburagi
Residents of Kamalapur staged a protest by locking the Town Panchayat office on Saturday, condemning the supply of contaminated drinking water, non-functional streetlights and other basic infrastructure problems in various wards. The protesters alleged that drinking water supplied to several wards was contaminated and foul-smelling. They claimed that water was being supplied without proper treatment, posing a risk to public health, and that several residents had fallen ill after using the water.
According to the protesters, the filtration unit used to treat water supplied from the Belakota Dam has been non-functional for some time. Despite repeated complaints to the authorities, no steps had been taken to repair the unit, they alleged. They also pointed out that streetlights on several electricity poles in the town were not functioning, leaving residents to move around in darkness at night. They demanded immediate repairs to all faulty streetlights.
The protesters further said thousands of people visit the Kamalapur weekly market every Sunday and alleged that, despite repeated requests over the past six months, no drinking water facility had been provided for traders and customers. The protesters accused the Town Panchayat authorities of failing to give priority to basic civic issues while focusing on other administrative works, including development works in new layouts and transfer of property records. They demanded immediate action to resolve the civic problems. Former Gram Panchayat president Santosh Rampure, Dasimayya Vaddanakeri, Basavaraj Sugur, Vijaykumar Matur, Annappa Pujari, Sharanu Kumbar, Santosh Pawar, Thavar Giri Tanda, Subhash Panchal and Santosh Mugali were among those who participated in the protest.
