NEW DELHI: Issues like contaminated water, pipeline leakages and irregular water supply in the national capital are not recent, but the result of years of neglect, Water Minister Parvesh Verma said on Friday, in apparent reference to the previous AAP government.
Making this assertion in the assembly, he also said these chronic problems arose due to indecision and delay by the previous governments.
The minister presented a detailed and fact-based statement in the Legislative Assembly, stating that the city government and Delhi Jal Board, with the support of the central government, is committed to ensure clean, equitable and continuous (24x7) water supply to every household in Delhi.
However, he said the current government inherited a dilapidated and severely neglected water infrastructure.
“We did not create these problems, but we inherited them. The difference is that we are not running away from responsibility. We are delivering solutions,” he said. Addressing the House, Parvesh highlighted that out of Delhi’s 16,000 km water pipeline network over 5,200 km pipelines are more than 30 years old and around 2,700 km pipelines are 20–30 years old.
As a result, the city has been facing frequent leakages, pipeline bursts, contamination risks and Non-Revenue Water (NRW) losses of up to 55 percent. “When pipelines are 30 years old, it is not water that flows- problems do,” he said.
The minister informed that the Chandrawal and Wazirabad water reform projects, proposed as early as 2011, remained stalled for years due to the indecision, repeated tender cancellations and conflicts with funding agencies under the previous government.
“Had the work been completed on time, Delhi would have received clean water. Delays were engineered to favour select contractors,” the minister said, adding Chandrawal command area project covers 96 square kilometres and will cater around 22 lakh population. Tenders cancelled in 2020 and work not awarded despite financial bids opening in 2021, violation of JICA guidelines occurred and repeated changes in DPR, scope and schedule of rates.