Solan: Parwanoo water supply scheme will be handed over to Jal Shakti Department

Solan: Himachal Pradesh Housing and Urban Development Authority (Himuda) is planning to hand over the water supply scheme of Parwanoo town and its surrounding areas to Jal Shakti Department (JSD). This will ensure its proper management, as involvement of two agencies often hampered important functions like timely repair of water supply infrastructure and smooth supply of water to residents. This problem came to the fore every year when diarrhoea cases were reported in this industrial area. Since water distribution is primarily the work of the Jal Shakti Department, the need to bring the scheme under its control was felt for a long time.

Himuda supplies water to Parwanoo town from the Kaushalya river, while the Jal Shakti Department supplies water to the surrounding areas of Ambota, Kamli, Tipra and Chandryani. “During last year’s monsoon, the dam on Kaushalya suffered extensive damage. Himuda had carried out repair work at a cost of Rs 50 lakh. Himuda Executive Engineer Girish Sharma said that this has helped to deal with the problem to some extent, though the area faces water shortage during summer.
Himuda had sent an estimate of Rs 4.80 crore to the state government seeking funds for repairing the dam and water supply infrastructure, which includes pipelines, roads and necessary safety measures to protect the pumping station at Kamli. In a meeting of the Board of Directors held in October 2023 under the chairmanship of Himuda Chairman CM Sukhu, it was decided to transfer the water supply of Parwanoo city to JSD. The scheme is to be handed over to the department after the current monsoon season. As per the discussion between the two departments, a sub-divisional office is to be opened in Parwanoo and a divisional office in Dharampur, besides Rs 5 crore will be provided for repair and maintenance of water supply infrastructure.