Delhi water infra upgrade on the cards, no call on late fee yet

Officials said that software upgrades will be made and the implementation strategy finalised to provide a huge relief to residential consumers on the late payment surcharge

New Delhi

Currently, the Wazirabad plant provides 110 million gallons a day of water every day. (Sanjeev Verma/HT)

The Delhi Jal Board (DJB) has approved several projects, including the upgrade of two water treatment plants and extending a round-the-clock water supply project, aimed at improving water supply in infrastructure and strengthening the transmission system in part of the city, officials aware of the developments said.

The decisions were taken in the DJB’s general board meeting held on Wednesday, officials said. They said that decisions on matters related to an amnesty scheme and inflated bills are likely to be taken in another board meeting later this month.

Water minister Verma posted on X: “Today, I chaired the 172nd meeting of the Delhi Jal Board. During the meeting, detailed discussions were held with officials on several important issues related to the board, and necessary decisions were made. Our government is continuously striving to make the functioning of the Jal Board transparent, accountable, and in the interest of the public.”

Launched in 2013, the Malviya Nagar Water Services (MNWS) was one of Delhi’s earliest public-private partnership (PPP) initiatives in the water sector. It aimed to upgrade supply infrastructure and service, including round-the-clock access to select pockets, such as Navjiwan Vihar and Geetanjali Enclave. While a 24-hour water supply has remained limited, many areas have benefited from more reliable schedules, better pressure, and quicker complaint redressal.

Officials said that the board members have also agreed to proposals for improving and upgrading the Wazirabad water treatment plant. “The project also includes replacement and upgradation of the transmission system in the catchment area of the treatment plant. Another proposal related to the upgradation works at Chandrawal water treatment plant was agreed upon. The approvals will expedite the projects,” the official cited above said.

One of the oldest water treatment plants in the city, the upgrade of Wazirabad and Chandrawal WTPs has been an ongoing process over the past decade. Currently, the Wazirabad WTP supplies 110mgd (million gallons a day) water to the northern and central Delhi and NDMC pockets, while the 90mgd Chandrawal plant caters to north, northwest and central Delhi localities.

Amnesty scheme

While water minister Parvesh Verma did not comment on the board decisions taken on Wednesday, he said that the “much-awaited water bill amnesty scheme” is likely to be taken up by the board later this month. The board is planning to provide a full waiver on the late payment surcharge to domestic consumers and the government sector, Verma told HT.

The minister said that the software being used by the DJB, which was developed and maintained by Wipro, needed to be upgraded to implement the scheme. “Their contract period has been completed, and now, they have been given an extension,” he said.

Verma said: “LPSC charges are calculated at 18% interest plus compounding charges, which leads to a massive spike in bills, and we are also working on resolving this compounding interest problem.”

Commercial connections will not be covered in this scheme, he said. “Even after the waivers and providing massive relief to consumers, we are expecting to collect around ₹7,000-8,000 crore in recovery,” the minister said.