How precious can a cell phone actually be? Rajesh Vishwas, food inspector of Koyalibeda block in Chattisgarh, visited the Kherkatta Paralkot reservoir last Sunday to enjoy his day off.
But he dropped the device into the 15-foot-deep water while taking a selfie - eventually setting in motion a long process of emptying the dam to retrieve the valuable entity. A pump was made to run for full three days, draining out millions of litres of water.
By the time his Samsung S23 phone worth around $1,200 was retrieved, it was too water-logged to work. Although Vishwas claimed the device contained sensitive government information and needed to be retrieved, he has been accused of misusing his position.
The food inspector said he had received verbal permission from an official to drain "some water into a nearby canal", adding the official said the process would, in fact, help the farmers who would get more water.
The 'Mission Mobile Khojo' finally came to an end when another official, from the water resource department, arrived at the site following a complaint.
Highlighting the importance of water as an essential resource, Priyanka Shukla, a Kanker district official, told The National newspaper Vishwas had been suspended until an inquiry.
Vishwas has rejected allegations of misusing his position, adding the water he drained out in the three days was from the overflow section of the reservoir and "not in usable condition".
His actions have drawn heavy criticism from politicians.
Chhattisgarh's opposition BJP party's national Vice-President took to Twitter to condemn the move, saying when people are relying on tankers for water facility in scorching summers, the officer has drained out millions of litres which could have helped irrigate 1,500 acres of land.
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