Around 3,000 people living in seven residential apartments in a Ranchi neighbourhood were locked in by a 150-strong mob for three hours on Monday for allegedly releasing sewage into an open drain, which on its own is a stark example of flawed civic planning in a capital city.
The "hostages" were rescued after senior corporation officials intervened to pacify the protesters, mostly residents of low-lying areas that are flooded by the overflowing drain, and police help was sought to break open the locks.
Harihar Singh Road in Morabadi is address to upmarket Gokuldham Society, Indu Kamal Apartments, Anjali Apartments, Arunoday Apartments, Surya Apartments,Basundhara Apartment and Shree Durga Palace, and many other standalone homes, besides urban slums.
The main drain passing through the area has been trouble for the past couple of years because it has no outlet. Earlier, the drain used to open into a private land, the owner of which moved court and won the case. Consequently, the outlet was blocked and the Ranchi Municipal Corporation (RMC) didn't bother to find a viable alternative.
Now, every time it rains, the drain overflows and dirty water swamps the area, making life difficult for people who live in modest homes compared to those living in high-rises. Of late, local residents have been alleging that Gokuldham Society, where some 1,000 people live in 64 posh flats, is releasing sewage into the open drain and this was the trigger of Monday's unprecedented protest from 7.30am.
"While other flats are also to blame, Gokuldham Society is responsible for 75 per cent of our drain pain. It releases sewer water onto the road. Every morning, I pinch my nose on my way to the temple. Flooding has also damaged a part of the road," said Arti Devi, one of the agitated local residents.
Shantanu Sharma, another protester, was more vocal. "They keep their apartments clean and treat us like animals. They release sewage on our road. We will teach them a lesson. Today, we locked their gates; tomorrow, we will dump our garbage in their apartments," he said.
Kiran, the secretary of Gokuldham Society, denied the charges. "We have a cesspit for sewage. Only kitchen water is released into the drain, which is defective and is causing all the problem. It is not our responsibility to construct a new drain. What is the RMC doing?" she said.
Around 10.30am, after the locks were broken in the presence of additional municipal commissioner Om Prakash Shah, the protesters forced their way into Gokuldham Society and police narrowly averted a clash.
Many residents were inconvenienced. "I had an important meeting to attend, but decided not to get into an argument with the angry mob," said C.K. Mishra, a senior central government employee.
Later in the day, additional municipal commissioner Shah summoned Gokuldham builder Sumit Kumar with his building map.
"The cesspit was found to be overflowing a bit. But, the main problem is that the drain has no outlet. There is a culvert crossing Morabadi road, to which the drain can be connected, but the problem is that construction work is blocking a part of the culvert too. We will find out a solution," Shah said.
On June 11, similar tension had brewed in the area after which mayor Asha Lakra had promised to fix the mess in a fortnight. The rest is an open - and dirty - secret.
