Pune: Women in Lohegaon Organize Handa-Morcha Protest for Access to Drinking Water
Lohegaon, 24th April 2023: A group of women in Lohegaon organized a Handa-Morcha protest against the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to demand access to drinking water. The protest was led by Seema Gutte, an organizer for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) women’s group.
Residents in the Yojana Nagar area have been struggling for water despite paying high taxes to the municipality. Approximately 200 households are dependent on bore wells and private tankers for their water supply, spending an average of Rs 3,000-4,000 per month. During the protest, citizens expressed their frustration and questioned how the common man could afford to live in such conditions.
Although the municipal corporation’s water channel has passed through the main road, the municipality has ignored requests to lay the water channel on the internal road. After repeated follow-ups, Junior Engineer Sudhir Allurkar visited the protest site and assured citizens that the water supply issue would be resolved once the tank at Harantale Vasti is completed. The municipality also promised to arrange a tanker for citizens immediately.
However, the protesters blocked the Lohegaon-Wagholi main road, demanding a written confirmation rather than a verbal one. The municipal corporation responded to the intensity of the agitation by providing a written assurance, and the protest was withdrawn.
AAP district president Mukund Kirdat, Dattatraya Kalje, Sudarshan Kaputkar, and many citizens of the area were present during the protest.
