Tribune news service
spreader blanket
mandi, october 6
Residents of Udaipur have urged authorities to complete the sewerage project notification that was issued in 2009. They say the area has become a tourist attraction after the Atal Tunnel provided all-weather connectivity. Efficient sewerage is now needed as the number of tourists visiting the tourist area has multiplied. The absence of the system poses a threat to Chenab.
Every house, hotel, home stay and commercial property in the area should have a sewer connection, they argue.
NOC canceled
The project was delayed due to the Udaipur Gram Panchayat canceling its No Objection Certificate (NOC) granted to the department. The issue is being taken up with the gram panchayat to get the NOC. —Ravinder Kumar Sharma, XEN, Jal Shakti Department, Keylong
Work left halfway
In 2011, two contractors were awarded tenders and more than Rs 1 crore was spent to install a sewer pipe in Udaipur. However, work on the project was stopped halfway through and has not been resumed until now. —Sudershan Thakur, President, Gramin Udaipur Youth Organization
In 2009, the Department of Irrigation and Public Health issued a notice to install sewage pipes in all houses and establish a sewage treatment plant at a cost of Rs 4.13 crore. Sudershan Thakur, Chairman of Gramin Youth Organization Udaipur, says, “In 2011, two contractors were awarded tenders and more than Rs 1 crore was spent on installing a sewer pipe in Udaipur. However, the work was stopped midway, which has not been resumed until now.”
Today, people in the Udaipur area, including hotel owners and homestay owners, use cesspools to dispose of sewage. As the influx of tourists has increased, hotel owners fear that cesspools will fill up beforehand, leaving them without sewage disposal methods.
Hee Ram Gaur, a homestay owner, says it is unfortunate that the project has suffered due to the apathy of successive governments. “Both Congress and the BJP are responsible for the delay in the completion of the project. They did not care about this project, which is the need of the moment to save the Chenab and the delicate ecology of the area”, he adds.
Executive Engineer (XEN), Jal Shakti Department, Keylong, Ravinder Kumar Sharma says, “The project was delayed due to Udaipur gram panchayat canceling its No Objection Certificate (NOC) given to the department. The issue is being taken up with the gram panchayat to get the NOC.”
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