Potable water a distant dream for 45 villages

Arun Sharma

Tribune News Service

Ropar, December 14

Drinking water supply to residents of 45 villages in the Nurpur Bedi block remains a distant dream even as a project in this regard started in November 2013.

After completion of nearly 65 per cent of work, the contractor has stopped the work alleging that the government has failed to reimburse more than Rs 3 crore against the work already done.

It was five years ago in 2012 when local resident and RTI activist Dinesh Chadha got information that drinking water from 18 supply schemes in the area being supplied to 45 villages was not fit as alkalinity, turbidity and iron was more than the required proportion.

He filed a public interest litigation in the Punjab and Haryana High Court and the state government submitted an affidavit stating that a scheme for supply of treated canal water from water treatment plant at Kiratpur Sahib for the affected villages was approved on November 14, 2013.

The cost of the project, which was to be completed within two years, was later enhanced to Rs 25 crore. Under the scheme, besides constructing 16 storage tanks and one overhead reservoir tank, the pipeline was to be laid all over the area.

Now after four years, the contractor has left the work due to paucity of funds.

Contractor Arvinder Singh said the work worth more than Rs 13 crore had already been carried out and his bills worth Rs 3 crore had not been cleared for the past six months. Water Supply XEN Harjit Singh said the work was suspended due to paucity of funds.