Latur welcomes water express with ‘jal puja’, mantras and breaking coconut

BJP and Congress leaders bickered over taking credit for the much awaited water express to the drought stricken Latur.

A special train carrying five lakh litres of water to quench the thirst of drought stricken Latur city in Marathwada region, reached there Tuesday early morning and was welcomed by a priest reciting mantras and smiling politicians who broke a coconut before it.

Local BJP politicians performed the ‘jal puja’, while Congress leaders broke a coconut before the train as it is considered as auspicious in Indian culture. Interestingly, when the local media asked the priest what he was reciting, he could not give recall what it was but said it was for 'peace'.

\"We performed jal puja as it is our tradition. We perform puja for all occasions like Diwali, Ganesh festival so I do not think that there was anything wrong. We, of course, thanked the Centre and the state government and also the people who brought water here,\" Shailesh Lahoti, BJP city president said.

The priest who performed the jal puja said that he chanted a peace mantra. \"I prayed before the train, the peace mantras. It is very common before starting any new thing. The arrival of a train is very auspicious and will change fortune of the city. As per the Panchang (Indian calendar) good monsoon is predicted across the country,\" Raj Joshi, the priest said after performing the jal puja.

Immediately after arrival of the train, the mayor of the city who belongs to Congress, Sheikh Akhtar jumped into the tracks and broke a coconut. \"The BJP is trying to take credit of the water. But I and Congress party pursued the matter and got the water,\" Sheikh said.

While engine super-wiser Prashant Janrao said that it was a sad moment for him to carry water through wagons. \"I have carried oil and other essential commodities before this. This is the first time that I am carrying water through wagons. It is sad to see water scarcity in a small city like Latur,\" Janrao said.

Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmulan Samitee president Avinash Patil lashed the rituals performed before the train. \"It is ridiculous. The drought is not natural. It’s man made. We need to take deliberate efforts to change the situation and now distribute water equally among the people. However, performing Puja or following any other ritual will not help the people in any way,\" he said.

The train with 10 wagons carried 50,000 litre of water from Miraj in western Maharashtra to Latur in Marathwada region. It reached the Latur city on Tuesday early morning. The city has been facing severe drought and water scarcity is very acute. The city people receive water every fortnight through tankers of the government. Many people have reportedly migrated to Mumbai, Pune and other cities as water is not available.