Guj Cong plans 'jal yatra' to corner Modi government

In a bid to put Chief Minister Narendra Modi's government on a mat, Gujarat Congress is launching a statewide 'Jal Yatra' on the eve of upcoming budget session to highlight water scarcity in the state and will raise issues concerning common people in the assembly.

"As BJP government has never kept its past poll promises, we have decided to launch various agitation programmes on the issues of water scarcity, housing and employment which need urgent attention of the government," said Leader of the Opposition Shankarsinh Vaghela at a press conference on Tuesday.

The party would "aggressively" raise these issues during the budget session as people are "facing hardships due to government inaction", he said.

"The state government has failed miserably to make proper planning for providing water for drinking and irrigation", Vaghela charged adding his party would soon launch a statewide 'Jal Yatra' to highlight the issue.

He said the proposed 'Jal Yatra' will start from February 19, a day before the budget session commences, from Narayan Sarovar in Kutch and will cover 80 per cent of total 18,000 villages across the state.

The issue of water scarcity had figured prominently on the opposition's agenda during the campaign for assembly elections held last year.

"Womenfolk, who had voted BJP to power by standing in long queues, are now struggling for hours to get drinking water for the day," alleged Vaghela.

He said the state government was "misguiding" the people by announcing old water schemes under new names as it has "failed" to bring Narmada river water to scarcity-hit areas.