The long-discussed plan to provide Chandigarh with round-the-clock drinking water has once again been pushed into uncertainty. During the Municipal Corporation (MC) House meeting held on Friday, a major argument broke out among councillors as they debated whether the project should continue. Finally, mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla announced that the entire project would now be sent to the Union ministry of housing and urban affairs (MOHUA) for a detailed review. After the ministry examines it, the project will be brought back to the MC House for a final decision.
The 24x7 water supply project, which aims to ensure continuous water supply across Chandigarh, has been moving slowly for years. It was originally approved in 2022 at a cost of ₹576 crore. But due to delays, technical changes and additional components, the cost has now risen steeply to ₹1,741.28 crore—almost three times the original amount. This sharp rise in expenditure has become a major point of concern for councillors and citizens.
During the meeting, councillors engaged in loud arguments, especially after opposition members demanded that the project be scrapped entirely. They called it a “white elephant” and said it would only create financial pressure on the civic body. Congress councillor Gurpreet Singh Gabi argued that the project had too many shortcomings and uncertainties. He said that instead of spending such a large amount, the MC should start a simpler project to replace old water pipelines across the city. He added that the opposition did not want to support the high-cost project.
Mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla responded by saying that the MC needs a more professional and independent assessment. She said the Union ministry will be able to examine the funding pattern, the technical feasibility and the long-term benefits. According to her, the ministry’s detailed report would help the House make a clearer decision in the next meeting.
A major concern raised during the meeting was the experience of the Manimajra pilot project. This pilot, which was meant to test the idea of round-the-clock water supply in a smaller area before expanding citywide, faced several technical and financial challenges. A recent review report highlighted that the pilot project did not fully meet expectations and showed gaps in planning, data collection and implementation. Because of this, councillors questioned whether the citywide project—far larger and more expensive—could be successful.
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Deputy mayor Taruna Mehta said the project had “failed terribly” and would become a major embarrassment for the city if continued without proper evaluation. She said that the financial burden was rising every year, and the city needed a practical and realistic approach rather than ambitious but uncertain plans.
Former BJP mayor Anoop Gupta said that the House was shown only a status report, not the full project proposal. He demanded that the detailed proposal should be brought back to the House before any decision is taken.
In September, the House had already discussed scrapping the project, but that agenda was rejected at the time. This latest session again brought the issue to the forefront, showing that the project continues to divide political parties.
The MC House meeting also witnessed separate drama unrelated to the water project. Councillors from the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) protested against Chandigarh BJP chief JP Malhotra. They alleged that he had referred to colony residents as “anpadh” (illiterate) during a press conference a day earlier. They demanded that he apologise to citizens for the remark.
For almost 20 minutes, the councillors raised slogans and even came to the well of the House holding placards. Mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla tried calming the situation, saying Malhotra was not present in the meeting and therefore could not apologise. She also denied that he meant the word in the insulting sense being alleged.
Later in the meeting, the mayor addressed accusations that development work in opposition wards was being ignored. She said the opposition had boycotted a meeting she had called a week earlier, and claimed they were not serious about development. She added that the facts would be visible to the public.
Another issue raised was regarding a long-standing sanitation contract. BJP councillor Saurabh Joshi pointed out that a sanitation firm, M/s Lion’s Services Agency, had been awarded a ₹264-crore contract for the years 2017 to 2021-22. However, he said the company was receiving extensions year after year without any new bidding process. He argued that this practice reduces transparency and affects accountability, potentially costing the city financially.
Despite the controversies, the MC House still managed to pass 30 agendas during the meeting. Thirteen of them were related to re-carpeting roads across various sectors. Other approved agendas included:
Extending GIS-based sweeping to more areas in southern Chandigarh
Door-to-door garbage collection in 13 villages and commercial zones of Manimajra
A one-time settlement scheme for property tax recovery from charitable, government and autonomous institutions
Installation of new signages on V4 roads
Approval for e-auctioning 75 advertisement sites and unipoles
As the 24x7 water supply project now waits for a review from the Union ministry, its future remains uncertain. The next MC House meeting will play a crucial role in deciding whether Chandigarh will continue pursuing the ambitious citywide water upgrade or shift focus to alternative plans.
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