Uttarakhand: Villagers in Khatima protest over flooding, demand better roads

As flooding due to heavy downpour continues to affect daily activities in parts of Uttarakhand, residents of a ward in Khatima area staged a protest demanding better connectivity and relief from the deluge-like situation.

The agitation comes after family members of a pregnant woman were forced to take her to the hospital in a boat on Thursday.

Residents of ward number 10 here, mostly women, gathered before the office of Sub-Divisional Magistrate to stage a demonstration.

A protestor Sushma Devi said, "We have come from ward number 10. Last year my brother in law drowned. Now a pregnant woman was transported to a hospital in a boat as there was water everywhere and there are no roads."

"A boy was rescued from drowning on Tuesday. We are helpless as our children did not go to schools for 10 days. We are protesting here in front of the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) office. We hope that administration will help us in this," she said.

Manoj Kumar, Corporator of the ward, said, "We are facing crisis due to flood and water-logging every year. During rainy season we face this problem. People have to spend a whole week without eating as they cannot go out."

"Last year a person got drowned in the flood. I request the administration to build roads here so that people residing in villages could do their work in the rainy season," he said.

The India Meteorological Department on Thursday said the states such as Uttarakhand, the eastern part of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar are likely to witness heavy rainfall on Friday (July 12).