Balwant Garg
Tribune News Service
Faridkot, September 19
Constructed a year ago at a cost of over Rs 15.50 crore in Kotkapura, two sewage treatment plants are now gathering dust.
The Water Supply and Sanitation Board (WSSB) is waiting for power connections to make these plants functional, but the PSPCL has refused to supply power to these plants as WSSB is a defaulter to the tune of over Rs 5.5 crore.
While local residents are suffering the agony of overflowing sewage in the streets this monsoon, the WSSB said the Municipal Council was responsible for the payment of electricity arrears. “The non-payment of these arrears is the reason that these sewage plants have not started functioning yet,” said Parul Goyal, executive engineer, WSSB.
On August 31, a four-member team formed by National Green Tribunal (NGT) had visited Kotkapura to inspect these plants and expressed anguish over non-functioning.
MC president Bhupinder Singh Saggu said he was making all efforts to make these plants operational. “To get power supply connection for these plants, we are in process of clearing the PSPCL’s arrears. The power supply to the plants will be started soon,” he said.
Kotkapura, which once used to have one of the biggest cotton markets in Asia, is now financially so impoverished that its civic body is unable to pay salaries of its employees for months together.
Earlier, many MC employees approached the Punjab and Haryana HC, which directed the authorities to stop spending on development works and fuel for official vehicles until arrears of the staff were paid.
Rs15-cr Kotkapura sewage plants gather dust
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