An uninvited water-train for the parched Bundelkhand region arriving at Jhansi has threatened to snowball into a controversy between the Centre and the state government ahead of the meeting of Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 7 on the drought situation in the state. The battle has already reached the social media sites.
The UP government on Thursday turned down the Centre's offer to send a water-train to the state's drought-hit Bundelkhand region, saying the water crisis situation there was not as serious as in latur district of Maharashtra.
The UP government, however, requested the Centre to provide it 10,000 water tankers for distributing water in the region. "UPCM @Yadavakhilesh requests GOI for 10,000 road tankers to distribute water in Bundelkhand from available water resources around the region (sic)," the CM office tweeted.
"We do not have any requirement to bring water by train...We have made arrangements for providing water...Wherever tankers are required, an assesment has been made and tankers have been bought," Chief Secretary Alok Ranjan said.
"There is no such crisis (that we need) to bring water from outside," he said, adding handpumps had been rebored and ponds redug for ensuring water to the people of these areas.
The Centre dispatched the water-train to Mahoba following the request by BJP MP from Hamirpur Pushpendra Singh Chandel. He had met Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu and had requested the latter for sending a water-train to his constituency Hamirpur-Mahoba which was facing a serious water crisis due to drought.
Meanwhile, senior Samajwadi Party leader and PWD Minister Shivpal Yadav said in Kanpur: "We do not need water from outside...When we will need water, we will ask for it...Where will we store it if it comes through train like thisIJ"
The railways had offered on Wednesday to send a water-train to Bundelkhand's Mahoba district. A 10-wagon water-train has already arrived in Jhansi where it is has been kept in the railway yard. It will reach Mahoba on Thursday.
"The wagons are ready to be filled with water from a nearby reservoir for dispatch to the destination as and when needed," commercial officer, Jhansi railway division, Girish Kanchan said.
The drought-affected Bundelkhand region is spread across 13 districts of UP and Madhya Pradesh.