Woman kneels down to beg officials for clean water

A resident of Huai'an, Jiangsu Province, suddenly knelt down before local environmental officials during a live TV show last Friday, asking them to help control the pollution in a local river, Southern Metropolis Daily said on Monday.

The woman, surnamed Chen, said she and her family live near the polluted river Chaimi in the city's Qingpu district. Suffering from potential health risks from the river, she said she went to the show to make her voice heard by local policymakers.

During the program, Chen came toward the officials from the municipal environment agency and handed them a bottle of smelly water taken from the river.

Falling to her knees, Chen complained tearfully: "My family and I have long been struggling to live amid the fearsome stench."

"Living in the area stunk up by the river poses a great health threat to local residents, children in particular," she added.

Stunned by the woman's behavior, officials at the show, including Bian Aiwu, chief of the municipal green department, looked embarrassed.

During the TV show, an undercover interview was also broadcast, in which an employee of the municipal green department said the green agency should not be blamed for the pollution of the river, since the organ has limited power, and pollution issues such as the Chaimi River case should be left to the municipal government to fix.

As a major water logging drainage facility of Qingpu district, the river has been polluted by discharge from an increased number of small businesses in the region. With a poor sewage infrastructure, the facility has been overwhelmed by pollutants released by local residents, and water quality of the river has deteriorated, according to Bian.

In response to Chen's complaint, deputy chief of Qingpu district said the district government will launch an investigation into the case and take measures to clean the polluted river as soon as possible.

The TV show made a splash after it was uploaded online. "People's extreme behavior reflects their helplessness at the inaction of government. Aren't these officials of Huai'an ashamed of themselves?" netizens said.