Punjab Newsline | Amritsar
Punjab Water Supply and Sanitation Minister Hardeep Singh Mundian on Tuesday dedicated a Rs 266.95-crore canal water-based multi-village water supply scheme to residents of the border areas of Amritsar district.
The project will provide clean drinking water to 45,343 households covering around 2.86 lakh people across 167 villages in Ajnala, Harsha Chhina, Majitha and Chogawan blocks.
Under the project, a 39 MLD-capacity water treatment plant has been established at Kandowali and Majjupura on the Lahore Branch of the Upper Bari Doab Canal. A 285.97-km pipeline network and 20 water storage tanks are also being constructed to supply treated canal water to the villages.
Mundian said the project aims to reduce dependence on groundwater and ensure a sustainable supply of safe drinking water. The scheme will cover 101 villages in Ajnala, 56 in Harsha Chhina, nine in Majitha and one in Chogawan.
According to officials, several villages in the area were facing drinking water problems due to high TDS levels and the presence of elements such as arsenic in groundwater. The canal-based project has therefore been initiated to provide safer drinking water and help reduce water-related health concerns.
MLA Ajnala Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal thanked the Punjab government for launching the scheme and said it would provide clean drinking water to people in the border areas.
Administrative Secretary, Water Supply and Sanitation, Ramvir said the operation and maintenance of the project would be undertaken by the concerned agency for 10 years after its completion.
The event was attended by officials of the Water Supply and Sanitation Department and public representatives, including Talbir Singh Gill, Sonia Mann, SDM Ajnala Charumitra and senior engineering officials.
