Review 24×7 water supply project for city: Tewari

Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari has demanded a thorough review of the 24×7 water supply project.

While reacting to the vigilance probe into the pilot project in Manimajra, he said the inquiry is purposeless as it will not solve the serious questions regarding the project. He said the saffron party has demanded the vigilance probe to wriggle out of the situation created due to the failed project ahead of the Municipal Corporation (MC) election.

Notably, the vigilance probe had been launched following a letter written by Chandigarh BJP president Jatinder Pal Malhotra flagging alleged corruption in the works and issues plaguing the project.

Tewari said he has been raising concerns about the 24×7 water project for a long time. The BJP and the civic body have even put Union Home Minister Amit Shah in an embarrassing situation by inviting him to inaugurate a project that was not even complete, he added.

‘Residents not getting clean water even for an hour’

“No due diligence was taken before launching the project. When you have no capacity to provide water round the clock, why was the project launched in the first place?” he asked.

The MP said in reality, the people of Manimajra were not getting clean water for even an hour daily. He raised concerns about the project in Parliament, but, in the reply, was told that residents are getting water supply 18 hours daily. “They have misguided Parliament too through these false claims,” he said.

Tewari said he was of the view that the entire 24×7 water supply project should be seriously reviewed, including its financial implications, viability, residents’ choice before any decision is taken.

The MC, he said, is going to take a Rs 600-crore loan for the project to cover the entire city, which will have to be repaid with heavy interest.

“When the pilot project has failed, why are you taking the loans for the full project? The views of the residents must be taken into consideration, whether they want 24×7 muddy, irregular and insufficient water supply for a heavy price or they are happy with the proper supply of clean water with full pressure for fixed hours a day,” he said.

Project inaugurated in haste: Bansal

Former Union Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal said while the 24×7 water supply project was inaugurated with great fanfare by the Home Minister, the decision-making was hasty. He said the project was launched without actually putting the necessary infrastructure in place — merely as a PR exercise ahead of the elections.

One year down the line, far from getting a continuous supply of filtered water, the residents receive muddy water, raising serious questions about Rs 75 crore of public money spent on the pilot project. “The tall claims of the BJP government have evaporated and people continue to suffer,” he added.

Chandigarh