Sewage plant only hope for Jandiala residents

Despite improvements in sanitation and road infrastructure over the past few years, non-functional sewer lines and open drains remain a major concern for residents of Jandiala.

The residents are eagerly awaiting the completion of the under-construction sewage treatment plant (STP). Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO, MLA from Jandiala Guru, has claimed that the STP will be completed in a record time and help resolve the sewerage issues.

A large portion of Jandiala’s interior area is still without sewer lines. Visitors and traders in the congested markets frequently complain about the foul smell emanating from open drains. Ironically, the government spent over Rs 12 crore to revamp Bazaar Thatheras by developing shop facades and installing tiles, but the open sewer drains remain, causing inconvenience to traders and visitors.

Dharmvir Singh, a local resident, said, “The narrow sewer lines need to be replaced with wider ones. During the rainy season, the entire market gets waterlogged. The drain at the main Khadoor Sahib Road gets choked, causing water to enter houses. Ghaa Mandi Chowk and the low-lying areas near Baba Handal also get flooded.”

The Jandiala Municipal Council has outsourced 100 workers for door-to-door garbage collection and installed machines for waste segregation and processing at a dump site near Baba Handal. A supervisor at the dump site stated that the site is being cleared, and all garbage is being shifted to the Bhagtanwala dump in Amritsar. He also claimed that residents dumping waste in open drains is a major cause of sewer line blockages.

Sarbajit Singh Sonu Jandiala, a Congress leader and social worker, stated that encroachments, traffic congestion and solid waste management are the major challenges in Jandiala town. Narrow streets and roads are occupied by shopkeepers, vendors and haphazardly parked vehicles. Auto-rickshaw drivers worsen the situation by parking their vehicles anywhere in the city. The town urgently needs better traffic management to prevent frequent jams. An overhead water tank installed at the local bus stand has remained non-functional since its construction and is at risk of collapse”.

Sanjiv Kumar, president of the Municipal Council Jandiala, said, “The construction of the sewage treatment plant is underway, and the sewerage issue will only be resolved after the project’s completion. The Water and Sewerage Supply Board is executing the work. The PWD revamped Bazaar Thatheras, so we are not responsible for their work.”