Chandigarh | POD, News Desk

Congress MP from Sirsa and former Union Minister Kumari Selja raised concerns over the quality of drinking water in Sirsa, alleging that the continued supply of contaminated water has become a serious public health issue. She called on the Haryana Government to immediately address the situation and explain why the city’s ₹200-crore RO-based drinking water project has not delivered its intended benefits to residents. In a statement, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) member referred to reports indicating that sewage-mixed water was reaching households in parts of the city and said the issue warranted urgent administrative intervention. Citing figures from the Public Health Engineering Department, Selja said 295 bacteriological water samples had reportedly failed quality tests in Sirsa district, including 183 samples from Sirsa city. She also referred to reports of more than 170 complaints related to contaminated drinking water and water supply being received over the past week. She said such findings raise concerns about the safety of drinking water and increase the risk of water-borne diseases, including typhoid, cholera and diarrhoea, particularly among children, senior citizens and people with weakened immunity. Selja noted that during the Congress government, an RO-based drinking water project worth nearly ₹200 crore was launched in Sirsa in 2014 with the objective of supplying purified drinking water to the city’s residents. She added that the city also has multiple existing water supply facilities, including the Chittorgarh Patti Water Works, HUDA Sector-19 Water Works, Mini Secretariat Water Works and Chaudhary Devi Lal University Water Works. Despite these facilities, if a large number of residents are still receiving contaminated water and several localities continue to depend on alternative sources of uncertain quality, the government must explain why such a major public investment has not translated into safe drinking water for citizens,” Selja said.The Congress leader alleged that ageing water supply pipelines—many reportedly 40 to 60 years old—may have deteriorated to the point where sewage is entering the distribution system. She argued that temporary repairs and chlorination alone would not provide a lasting solution and called for the phased replacement of old pipelines. Selja demanded a high-level technical audit of Sirsa’s drinking water infrastructure, an independent review of the operational status and utilisation of the RO project, priority replacement of damaged pipelines, regular public disclosure of water quality test reports and alternative arrangements to provide safe drinking water until the problem is fully resolved.

She said access to clean drinking water is one of the most fundamental responsibilities of any government and urged the state administration to prioritise public health over political claims. “The people of Sirsa deserve to know why a modern RO-based project established to provide safe drinking water has yet to deliver its full benefits,” she said.

POD/DESK.