KANKER: The irrigation officer who issued a verbal permission to the suspended CG food inspector to drain 21 lakh litres of water to fish out his expensive phones faces legal actions.
On May 26th, the Superintendent Engineer of the Indravati project wrote to the Sub Divisional Officer RK Dhivar, asking why the cost of wasted water should not be recovered from his salary. The letter underlined that water is required in all reservoirs for irrigation and other purposes during summer.
Rajesh Vishwas, a food officer in Koilibeda block of Kanker district, while enjoying a holiday at the Paralkot Reservoir of Kherkatta Dam accidently dropped his Rs 1Lakh phone into the dam. The phone has fallen into the stilling basin of the dam’s waste weir, which had 15 feet deep water, and locals dived in to try and find it. As they failed to retrieve the phone, 2 diesel pumps of 30 hps were engaged to drain out 21lakh litres of water for only a mobile phone that but obvious would not survive deep waters for long time.
Mr Vishwas claimed he was trying to retrieve his phone as it had official departmental data, and the water was “waste”.
The area which was emptied has over 10 feet-deep water even during summers, and animals often drink from it. The water, through a canal, is also used by local farmers.