The Himachal Pradesh Department of Education has announced the closure of all schools in Shimla for the next five days due to the acute water shortage. The educational institutions will remain dysfunctional between June 4-8. To compensate the academic loss, schools will remain open during the annual monsoon break scheduled in July.
The crisis in Shimla escalated as the city has been deprived of regular water supply for the past 15 days. Protests erupted in various parts of Shimla on Saturday. To further aggravate the situation, a woman was killed after being hit by a water tanker.
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The Opposition has blasted the ruling BJP government, accusing it of failing to take preventive measures. “This did not happen all of a sudden. There was always a concern of water shortage in Shimla. But the BJP government failed to take any step,” said Congress MLA Vikramaditya Singh.
Locals have sought the immediate resignations of Shimla’s Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and Municipal Commissioner. In what is being seen as a move to placate the people’s anger, Irrigation, and Public Health Minister Mahender Singh ordered the suspension of Shimla Municipal Corporation SDO.
The water requirement in Shimla is around 32-35 million litres of water per day (MLD). The city, however, is receiving only 22.5 MLD since the past fortnight. The situation marginally improved on Saturday after the supply was increased to 28 MLD on Saturday.
Tourists who are in Shimla have been urged to return, whereas the hotels have been asked to cancel the bookings of tourists who have planned their trip in the upcoming days.
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