Blame game on as water woes rise

Sukhmeet Bhasin

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, July 17

Leaving the public woes behind, Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal and state Finance Minister Manpreet Badal have blamed each other for the waterlogging situation in the city.

Harsimrat said the Finance Minister refused to give funds to the MC to complete the 12-km-long sludge carrier line, which was aimed at doubling its capacity to drain out water from low-lying areas. She said only 4 km of the line was completed during the SAD-BJP government. The Union minister said more than two years had passed since the formation of the Congress government in the state, but the line had not been extended.

Harsimrat said, “The civic body also suffered because the Manpreet Badal did not release funds for the repair of motors and cleaning sewer lines. The MC was is yet to receive Rs16 crore from the pending funds of the Central Urban Renewal Mission, but these funds were also denied to it. Instead, these were given to the Improvement Trust. It has compounded the problem and resulted in waterlogging in various areas.”

The Bathinda MP also asked the state Finance Minister to tell the people “why he had not implemented the first promise listed in his party’s election manifesto for the Bathinda Assembly segment in which it was mentioned to find a solution to waterlogging”.

“The Finance Minister had promised that he would make arrangements to drain out water by gravity flow from the city. He, however, forgot to allocate even one rupee for this project,” she added.

On the other hand, Manpreet asked four questions from Harsimrat Badal.

He said, “Can Bathinda MP explain why her party signed such a lopsided MoU? Can she inform the public as to why her party, which has been heading the Bathinda MC ever since it came into existence, has been stalling the tenders every time? Can Harsimrat explain as to why the MC is not paying compensation to farmers whose land falls next to the sludge carrier? Can Harsimrat explain why the MC has not cleared the alignment of the sludge carrier so far?”

“Looking after the entire sewerage network is the responsibility of the MC, which is being governed by the SAD. It is deliberately delaying all projects to score political points,” he added.

“Unprecedented and torrential rain is an act of nature. Three factors – lack of a proper drainage system during the SAD regime, inaction by the Municipal Corporation, which is led by the SAD-BJP combine, and inability to utilise funds by the SAD Mayor — led to the flooded situation,” Manpreet added.