About thirty women, apparently fed-up with the poor water supply position in the Suigaran mohalla of the city, stormed their way into the Town Hall and broke the window panes and furniture.

Employees of the municipal corporation made a futile bid to keep the protesters bolted in the hall but there was no sign of the police even an hour after the incident. Some senior political leaders, including a former president of the municipal council master Niranjan Dass and former councillors Jaspal Nani and Krishan Chand Budhu, intervened in the matter and defused the situation.

Several localities in the walled city limits and also a number of peripheral colonies of Patiala, have been facing an acute shortage of drinking water over the last few days. While the corporation authorities maintain that the situation is normal and there is no such crisis, the residents insist that their taps have run dry.

Corporation executive officer J. S. Punia on being contacted, refused to comment on the situation.

Meanwhile, Niranjan Dass, former president of the municipal council said that the corporation authorities had failed to fight the water problem faced by the city residents and reiterated that if the present position persisted, the municipal councillors of the Congress would gherao the office of the corporation.

Former MC Jaspal Nani said that the people living in Qila Chowk, Sanauri adda and Bhindianwali gali areas were trying to come to terms with this adverse situation and water has suddenly become a much sought after and prized commodity.

Meanwhile, it is learnt that corporation authorities have decided to lodge a complaint against the women involved in the ransacking of the Town Hall, corporation sources hinted.

Municipal Corporation Commissioner Harkesh Singh Sidhu said that the water supply position would improve very soon. He said the corporation has planned to install 8 more tubewells to meet the growing demand of drinking water during summer and these tubewells would become operational by April 15.

Reacting to today's incident, he said that the corporation is bound to provide better civic amenities to the people but reiterated that no one would be allowed to play with the law.