Varanasi Municipal Corporation staff faces farmers' ire

VARANASI: Amid protest by a group of farmers, the officials of district administration, Varanasi Municipal Corporation and police succeeded in measuring a pond land at Baraipur in Sarnath area. The UP Jal Nigam has proposed the construction of Water Treatment Plant (WTP) at this site.
For the proposed WTP, water from river Ganga will be taken for treatment before supplying it for drinking and other uses.For this, a land of a big water body situated in Baraipur near Sarnath railway station had been identified.
Earlier farmers used the land for farming. But when the government decided to establish a water treatment plant on the land, they protested. Many of them even went to court. On the directive of senior officials, the ADM city MP Singh, municipal commissioner RP Singh and other officials had been visiting Baraipur for past several days for negotiation and convincing the farmers to give up their possession. But when they remained rigid, the machinery decided to start the measurement of non-disputed land. RP Singh said, "It was decided to complete the measurement of that part of land on which there is no stay order of the Allahabad High Court."
On Sunday the ADM City, municipal commissioner, SP City, Rahul Raj along with several officials and employees of land revenue department with heavy police force reached there to complete the process of measurement.
A group of farmers staged massive demonstration but the presence of heavy police force helped in foiling there bid. The process of land measurement continued till late in the evening.