The work of the ambitious water supply scheme for Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar has been hampered due to the lack of coordination between the Maharashtra Jeevan Pradhikaran and the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI). It was expected that a solution for resuming the work would come to the fore during the water supply review meeting held on Monday. However, no solution was found during the meeting.
The water pipelines were laid in the middle of the road, and if the pipeline breaks in the future, it will pose a high risk to both the road and the people traveling on it. The concerned government departments are blaming each other for the improper planning. Minister Atul Save, MP Sandipan Bhumare, and MP Dr. Kalyan Kale called a meeting of the officers of the concerned departments to discuss the issue. The officers of both departments did not accept fault on their part. The officers were directed by the people’s representatives to stop the road work and initiate the water pipeline work first.
No solution in meeting
The meeting failed to derive any solution regarding the pipes laid below the road. A committee of experts has been established to find a solution to this problem. The committee has been directed to submit the report within four days. However, Minister Save did not comment on the action to be taken against the responsible officers.
The ambitious water supply project to supply water to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar from Jayakwadi was started with an expenditure of Rs 2,740 crore. During the pipeline laying work, the old pipeline and the 900 mm diameter new pipeline burst 54 times in a year. The present water supply timetable in the city has been disrupted, and people are getting water every eight alternate days.
Out of the total Rs 2,740 crore for the scheme, Rs 1,808 crore has been received so far, of which Rs 1,583 crore has been spent. In all, 88% of the pipeline laying work has been completed, and 70% of the pump house work has been completed. A total of 50 water tanks have been proposed in the city, of which the work on seven tanks has been completed.
