Bhubaneswar: City residents urinate in BMC office to protest poor drainage system
Drainage repair work in Sabar Sahi has been stalled for months, leaving residents to endure foul odours and drain water seeping into their homes. Despite numerous complaints, no action was taken to address their grievances
Bhubaneswar: Frustrated by the persistent foul smell and an incomplete drainage system in their area, residents of Ward 45, Sabar Sahi, Bhubaneswar, on Saturday staged an unusual protest by urinating in the chamber of the city engineer at the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) office.
The disgruntled residents formed a queue outside the office and entered the chamber of city engineer Bilash Kumar Behera, where they reportedly “urinated” to express their dissatisfaction. The protest, both bold and unconventional, has sparked widespread attention, with public opinion divided on social media.
Sources revealed that drainage repair work in Sabar Sahi has been stalled for months, leaving residents to endure foul odors and drain water seeping into their homes. Despite numerous complaints, no action was taken to address their grievances.
In an attempt to make their voices heard, the frustrated residents visited the BMC office to confront the city engineer. They allegedly urinated in his office to give him a sense of what it’s like to live with the stench and unsanitary conditions caused by the broken drainage system.
“I don’t understand why, despite repeated complaints, no action has been taken. The BMC keeps passing the blame to the sewerage and electricity departments, claiming a lack of cooperation from other agencies,” said Amaresh Jena, the corporator of Ward 45.
“BMC’s inaction on these complaints is unacceptable. The residents have been left with no choice but to continue their daily lives under miserable conditions. The BMC must be held accountable,” he added.
One of the protesting residents stated, “Today, we registered our protest by urinating in the office of the city engineer. If the drainage system isn't repaired soon, we won’t hesitate to take further action.”
Bhubaneswar Mayor Sulochana Das acknowledged the drainage issues in Ward 45, explaining that the repair work was halted because a private power distribution company had not yet relocated two electric poles. However, she assured residents that the problem would be resolved soon.