Chandigarh MC Commissioner gets notice over dirty water supply to Maloya

Taking suo motu cognisance of a news report published in the Chandigarh Tribune on Monday regarding the contaminated water supply in Maloya, Punjab State and Chandigarh (UT) Human Right Commission has issued a notice to the Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Chandigarh, for submitting a report a week before the next date of hearing.

Justice Sant Parkash, Chairperson of the commission, in the order issued today said that the commission had perused the news item, “Residents forced to drink dirty water as authorities pass buck”, indicating that the municipal corporation and Chandigarh Housing Board were evading the responsibility over maintenance of public health services for 4,960 small flats in Maloya. These had been constructed under the rehabilitation scheme, where residents were ‘being forced’ to consume contaminated water.

Accordingly, the commission said that let the complaint be put up before the Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Chandigarh, to submit his report a week before the next date of hearing. The order says that a copy of the order, along with a copy of the news item be sent to the Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Chandigarh, through an e-mail and by post for compliance, and to the Chief Secretary, UT, Chandigarh for information. The commission has listed the matter for June 27.

The news report highlighted that the residents of the areas had been complaining about the contaminated water supply for the last one month, but the municipal corporation had been evading the responsibility of resolving the issue.

The Chandigarh Housing Board claimed that the maintenance of the public health services (water, sewage and storm water supply) were handed over to the municipal corporation on October 28, 2022, but the latter said that it had not taken over the maintenance yet. The stand taken over by the Chandigarh MC left thousands of the residents of the area in the lurch as no department was officially taking care of the water supply and sewage work of the area for the last three years.

The people of the area have been complaining that they are getting contaminated water supply for the last many days. People are falling sick due to dirty water supply and are complaining about suffering from diarrhoea and vomiting.