In a strange incident, a man in Chhattisgarh nearly drained out an entire dam in search of his lost phone that had fallen into the water source. While on vacation at the Kherkatta Dam, Rajesh Vishwas, a food officer in the Koilibeda block of the Kanker district, unintentionally dropped his smartphone. He used pump services for three days straight to retrieve it, emptying gallons upon gallons of water.
To retrieve a smartphone, 41 lakh litres of water were drained.
According to earlier reports, the official drained the dam of about 21 lakh litres of water. According to a recent report from the reliable source, the amount of water could be as high as 41 lakh litres.
According to a report from the Pakhanjore sub-divisional magistrate, 4,104 cubic metres, or 41 lakh litres, of water were drained from the building without authorization.
Rajesh’s phone slipped while taking a selfie
According to reports, Rajesh was trying to take a selfie on the premises when his phone slipped from his hand and fell into the water. He was quoted as saying, “My phone slipped into the overflow tankers, whose water is not usable.”
Officer suspended by District Collector
It was discovered that the pumps ran from Monday night through Thursday morning to drain the water. However, in response to a complaint about the situation, a representative from the irrigation and water resources department sped over and stopped the activity. According to reports, Rajesh has been suspended by District Collector Priyanka Shukla for allegedly abusing his authority and failing to obtain permission from the concerned official.
Here’s what the Suspension Order said
“Vishwas misused his position to look for his mobile phone and without seeking permission from the competent officer evacuated water to the tune of lakhs of litre in this scorching summer season which is unacceptable. For the aforementioned act, he has been placed under suspension with immediate effect,” read in the suspension order.
He claimed of having permission to drain dam
Rajesh alleged that the phone had sensitive government data and he has verbally approved permission to empty the water resource. An NDTV report quoted the officer and read, “I called the Sub Divisional Officer (SDO) and requested him to allow me to drain some water into a nearby canal. He said it was not an issue if three-four feet deep water was drained, and would also benefit the farmers.”
Phone ‘not working’
However, Rajesh allegedly drained out more water than he was permitted. Also, it was noted that the phone had lost its functionality after days of being under deep water.