Darjeeling: After a delay of six years, work for the Balason water project in Darjeeling is finally expected to take off. The Army has given its consent to laying of pipelines in its area and will soon issue a No Objection Certificate (NOC).
Members of the Concerned Citizen's Association (CCA), a local social organization, confirmed on Thursday that they had met Army officials in Darjeeling some days back who assured them of the NOC.
"We met the Army officials based in Jalapahar, Darjeeling a few days back with the NOC issue that is stalling the water project. The project is expected to solve the water crisis in Darjeeling.
The officials assured us that the NOC would be provided within a month's time," said J B Edwards, secretary of the association.
It was in 2006 that the foundation stone for the two-stage water pumping project was laid by then Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya. With a estimated cost of Rs 55 crore, the project is being executed by Hyderabad-based Ramky Infrastructure Limited.
Though the company had set a 24-month deadline for the project, the Army refused to issue an NOC. The political turmoil in the Hills delayed the project further.
CCA in fact had to file an RTI petition to know the status of work. "We did not have any option but to file the RTI since despite repeated appeals we received no reply from the authorities concerned," pointed out Edwards.
Pipelines from Balason to Sinchel in Jorebungalow have already been laid. But, a six-kilometer pipeline in the Army area in Jalapahar and Katakpahar is yet to be laid.
Army officials in Darjeeling were, however, unavailable for comments.
However, even if the Army gives the NOC within this month, work will begin only after three months. "We have found that work of laying the present pipeline is not satisfactory. These may give rise to other problems which need to be looked into immediately," pointed out the association secretary.
The project when completed will supply water to the Darjeeling Municipality areas and villages covering a command area of 10.36 square km. At present, the town requires nearly 15 lakh gallons of water daily. However, in contrast during peak season the town receives 8-9 million gallons of water which drastically drops to about 4-5 million gallons in lean periods.
Members of the Concerned Citizen's Association (CCA), a local social organization, confirmed on Thursday that they had met Army officials in Darjeeling some days back who assured them of the NOC.
"We met the Army officials based in Jalapahar, Darjeeling a few days back with the NOC issue that is stalling the water project. The project is expected to solve the water crisis in Darjeeling.
The officials assured us that the NOC would be provided within a month's time," said J B Edwards, secretary of the association.
It was in 2006 that the foundation stone for the two-stage water pumping project was laid by then Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya. With a estimated cost of Rs 55 crore, the project is being executed by Hyderabad-based Ramky Infrastructure Limited.
Though the company had set a 24-month deadline for the project, the Army refused to issue an NOC. The political turmoil in the Hills delayed the project further.
CCA in fact had to file an RTI petition to know the status of work. "We did not have any option but to file the RTI since despite repeated appeals we received no reply from the authorities concerned," pointed out Edwards.
Pipelines from Balason to Sinchel in Jorebungalow have already been laid. But, a six-kilometer pipeline in the Army area in Jalapahar and Katakpahar is yet to be laid.
Army officials in Darjeeling were, however, unavailable for comments.
However, even if the Army gives the NOC within this month, work will begin only after three months. "We have found that work of laying the present pipeline is not satisfactory. These may give rise to other problems which need to be looked into immediately," pointed out the association secretary.
The project when completed will supply water to the Darjeeling Municipality areas and villages covering a command area of 10.36 square km. At present, the town requires nearly 15 lakh gallons of water daily. However, in contrast during peak season the town receives 8-9 million gallons of water which drastically drops to about 4-5 million gallons in lean periods.
Source: TOI
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