Capital to lay 7,000 km of new water pipelines in 2 to 3 years

New Delhi: The Delhi government has announced an ambitious plan to strengthen the capital’s drinking water infrastructure, including the laying of nearly 7,000 kilometres of new pipelines over the next two to three years. Water Minister Parvesh Verma informed the Delhi Legislative Assembly on Friday that the initiative is aimed at ensuring safe and adequate drinking water for every household in the city.

Replying to questions and demands raised by BJP MLA Satish Upadhyay, Verma said the government has already initiated major works in the water and sewerage sector. He informed the House that projects worth ₹7,212 crore have been started during the past 11 months, covering various aspects of water supply, treatment and distribution.

The minister said the Delhi government is working in coordination with the Centre to improve access to potable water across the capital. He, however, attributed existing shortcomings in the water sector to what he described as mismanagement by the previous Aam Aadmi Party government. Verma said that 94 projects related to water supply and sewerage have been taken up to address long-standing issues.

To enhance water availability, the government is also exploring inter-state cooperation. Verma said discussions are underway with Uttar Pradesh and Haryana to source additional raw water for drinking purposes. Under the proposed arrangement, Delhi would provide treated wastewater to these states for irrigation in exchange for raw water. He said the initiative could potentially add over 100 million gallons per day (MGD) to Delhi’s water supply.

The minister also highlighted efforts to curb water contamination by replacing old, damaged and leaking pipelines across the city. He said reducing losses in the Manak canal is a key priority, noting that nearly 40 per cent of water is currently lost during transmission. “We have initiated a plan to bring these losses down to around 5 per cent within the next two years,” he said.

Verma added that lowering water losses would be critical in achieving the government’s goal of providing round-the-clock water supply to every household. He also informed the Assembly that the Delhi government is reviving a water-sharing project with Himachal Pradesh to further augment the capital’s water resources.