Caste protests called off but canal damage sparks Delhi water crisis
Print Edition
MUCH of New Delhi’s water supply was cut off yesterday after members of an influential Indian caste sabotaged a canal as part of protests seeking preferential treatment that have killed at least 19 people.
A representative of the Jat caste said they had called off their week-long protests which saw thousands of troops deployed in Haryana, after the government of the northern state accepted their demands.
But the capital’s water board was still striving to restore full supplies to the city of 17 million.
India sent troops to secure the canal in Haryana after Jat protesters — demanding a quota for their caste in public service jobs and higher education — seized it on Saturday and diverted the water flow away from the capital.
By yesterday morning the army had regained control and was assessing the damage.
But with the water flow into the capital reduced by more than two-thirds, schools and many businesses remained shut and authorities urged people to ration water.
Delhi’s water board said it had been forced to limit supplies to the city, which receives little rain and has long struggled to provide enough water for its rapidly growing population.
Just 240 million gallons was being produced after the attack compared to the usual 820 million gallons a day, it said.
“There is extensive damage to the canal and it will take some time to fully restore the supply to Delhi,” said water board spokeswoman Sanjam Cheema. “Engineers are working and hopefully the work will be completed by evening.”
Troops had been deployed to Haryana on Saturday with orders to shoot on sight after week-long protests by members of the caste turned violent, with rioters setting fire to homes and railway stations and blocking highways.
The protests eased on Sunday after Haryana’s government agreed to the Jats’ demand for preferential access to sought-after government jobs and university places under India’s caste-based quota system.
A representative of the Jats, traditional farmers who make up the single largest community in the state with nearly 8 million members, said they had accepted the offer and would call off the protests.
India sets aside a proportion of jobs and university places for Dalits, known as “untouchables,” and for other so-called “backward castes,” under measures intended to remedy centuries of discrimination. But the policy causes resentment among other communities such as the Jats, who say it freezes them out.
The latest protests echo caste violence that swept the western state of Gujarat last August, leaving several dead. That state saw weeks of protests by the Patidar or Patel caste, who demanded the same benefits offered to lower castes.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
