*No progress on providing 30,400 house connections
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, May 30: The fate of much-talked about sewerage scheme for Greater Jammu is hanging in balance during the past three years but the Government continued to remain mute spectator despite the fact that inordinate delay would create impediments in making use of the infrastructure already created by expending crores of rupees.
The sewerage scheme for Greater Jammu was sanctioned under JNNURM at the cost of Rs 149.23 crore by the Union Government several years back. However, right from the very beginning there was slackness in the implementation of the scheme by the National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC).
According to the official figures, against the total project cost of Rs 149.23 crore, an expenditure of Rs 63.95 crore has been incurred so far. The Union Government has released its share of Rs 50.75 crore against the committed share of Rs 134.59 crore mainly due to the failure of the Housing and Urban Development Department to get the scheme expedited and submit timely Utilization Certificates to the Centre.
“Due to slow pace of work by the NBCC, the scheme could not be completed before the closure of JNNURM scheme by the Union Government and subsequent stopping of funding of the project”, sources said, adding “due to this the execution of the scheme virtually came to the grinding halt in 2013”.
Stating that State Government has not initiated any major step to ensure completion of the scheme, sources said, “all what has been done till date is making a representation to the Union Ministry of Urban Development for funding the project under newly launched Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) Scheme”.
As per the official details available with EXCELSIOR, under Comprehensive Sewerage Project Jammu (UIG), only 27 MLD capacity Sewerage Treatment Plant has been commissioned while as Trunk Sewer and Lateral Sewer Lines are yet to be completed and House Connections to be provided.
As against target of 26536 meter Trunk Sewer Lines, 25978 meter has been commissioned as on March 31, 2016 while as against target of 65500 meter Lateral Sewer Lines only 45366 meter lines have been laid, which is about 69%. However, no progress has been made as far as providing 30400 house connections is concerned.
Under Comprehensive Sewerage Left Out Area Project Jammu (UIG), against target of 1050 meter Trunk Sewer Lines, 870 meter has been laid till ending March 2016 while as only 1320 meters of Laterals Sewer Lines have been laid against target of 35220 meter.
According to the sources, “in the absence of funds nobody knows when two phases of Sewerage Scheme for Greater Jammu would be completed by the NBCC”, adding “the State Government should have provided funds from its own resources for the project keeping in view its importance for the Jammu city”.
“Moreover, inordinate delay in completion of sewerage scheme is also fraught with the danger of getting blocked the already laid Trunk and Lateral Sewer Lines particularly during the rainy season”, sources said, adding “nobody even knows the present status of these lines as since 2013 the Jammu city has experienced huge rains several times and possibility of huge silt already having flown into these lines cannot be ruled out”.
The delay in execution of work by the National Building Construction Corporation has also been admitted by the Deputy Chief Minister, Dr Nirmal Singh, who is also Minister Incharge Housing and Urban Development Department on the floor of the Legislative Assembly during the ongoing Budget Session at Srinagar in response to the question of party MLA from Jammu city, Rajesh Gupta.
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