Lok Sabha Question No. 299 (STARRED), answered on 2026-03-12
Subject: Contaminated Drinking Water Supply
Ministry: HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS
Asked by: Shri Manish Tewari

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS LOK SABHA

## STARRED QUESTION NO. 299

## TO BE ANSWERED ON MARCH 12, 2026

## CONTAMINATED DRINKING WATER SUPPLY

## NO. 299. SHRI MANISH TEWARI:

Will  the  Minister  of  HOUSING  AND  URBAN  AFFAIRS  be  pleased  to state:

- (a) whether the Government is aware of recent reports regarding supply of  contaminated  drinking  water  in  certain  areas  of  Chandigarh, leading to a number of residents falling sick;
- (b) if  so,  the  details  of  the  areas  affected,  the  number  of  complaints received  and  the  findings  of  water  quality  tests  conducted  in  this regard;
- (c) whether any lapses in water supply infrastructure, pipeline maintenance or monitoring systems have been identified and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) the  immediate  and  long-term  measures  taken  or  proposed  by  the Government  to  ensure  safe  and  potable  drinking  water,  including regular testing and infrastructure upgradation; and
- (e) whether any accountability has been fixed on the officials or agencies responsible for the lapses and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS (SHRI MANOHAR LAL)

- (a) to (e): A Statement is laid in the Table of the House.

STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PART  (a)  TO  (e)  OF  STARRED QUESTION NO. 299 DUE FOR ANSWER IN THE LOK SABHA ON 12 MARCH,

2026 REGARDING 'CONTAMINATED DRINKING WATER SUPPLY' (a) to (e): Water is a State subject. The State Governments are responsible for  monitoring,  enforcement,  and  corrective  action  for  drinking  water safety.  The  operation,  maintenance and replacement of old deteriorated pipelines is the responsibility of Urban Local Bodies (ULBs)/ parastatals. Government  of  India  supplements  the  efforts  of  the  States  through schematic  interventions/  advisories.  It  provides  financial  and  technical support  to  the  States  through  various  schemes/  Missions  such  as  Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and AMRUT 2.0 for approved infrastructure projects. The Administration of Union Territory of Chandigarh has informed that complaints were received regarding supply of water contamination cases in  the  areas  of  Mauli  Jagran,  Dariya  and  Hallo  Majra  in  Chandigarh. However,  in  majority  of  the  cases,  presence  of  muddy  water  has  been noticed which is linked to ongoing repair work of the supply lines. Besides, there have been cases where residents have utilized their water pumps during non-supply hours which are directly connected to the distribution lines, thus, generating internal pressure at the pipe joints and resulting in the mixing of mud with the water. The  UT  Administration  has  taken  immediate  measures  and  water samples  were  collected  randomly  and  got  tested through National Accreditation Board  of  Testing  and  Calibration  Laboratories  (NABL) accredited Lab. 1995 water samples were tested during the last 3 months and  the  tests  of  collected  samples  during  the  period  have  been  found satisfactory.  Flushing  of  water  supply  lines  was  done  to  ensure  zero contamination in the pipelines and proper chlorination was ensured in the potable water at user end. The UT Administration has also informed that in Chandigarh, water supply system is old one, which results in leakages in pipes  sometimes.    As  and  when  such  incidents  are  noticed,  immediate repair works are carried out.  Connectivity of all the left-out areas such as Mauli Jagran and Dariya which are dependent on ground water with canal water, is part of long term strategy of the UT Administration along with phase-wise  replacement  of  identified  old/damaged  distribution  pipelines with Ductile Iron (DI) pipelines. Under Atal  Mission  for  Rejuvenation  and  Urban  Transformation  2.0 (AMRUT 2.0), the Chandigarh Administration has taken up 07 projects with total cost of ₹166.39 crore, which include 2 water supply projects worth ₹43.77 crore and 05 sewer/septage management projects worth ₹122.62 crore.  The  approved  projects  cover  10.50  KM  new  water  network  and 239.69 KM of Sewer Network (167 KM new and replacement of 72.69 KM). So far, In Chandigarh, more than 1.76 lakh water tap connections in the urban  areas  and  2.36  lakh  sewer  connections  (including  households covered through FSSM) have been provided so far under AMRUT/ AMRUT 2.0 and  in  convergence.  20  KM  of  water  pipeline  network  and  30.13  KM  of sewer network has been laid/ replaced.

Drinking water contamination in urban areas is a multi-factor issue and  is  generally  attributable  to  distribution  system  vulnerabilities  and interface  issues  with  sewerage  and  sanitation  infrastructure.  Drinking water  supplied  in  urban  areas  is  required  to  conform  to  BIS  IS  10500 standards; however, deterioration in quality may occur due to infrastructure-related, operational, environmental and maintenance factors across transmission, storage and distribution systems. The key reasons for contamination in drinking water supply includes leakages, pipe bursts and defective joints, cross-connections with Sewerage and Drainage Systems, ageing infrastructure and corrosion, intermittent water supply and negative  pressure,  stagnation  and  prolonged  retention  of  water,  poor maintenance of storage and associated infrastructure, inadequate sewerage and septage management, etc.

The Ministry  of  Housing  Affairs  (MoHUA)  has  published  Manual  on Water Supply and Treatment Systems (Drink from Tap) in March 2024 for reference by the States/ ULBs for designing, implementation, drinking water quality and monitoring of the water supply projects. (https://mohua.gov.in/publication/manual-on-watersupplyandtreatment -systems---drink-from-tap---march2024.php).

MoHUA has issued an advisory in January, 2026 to all the States to carry  out  comprehensive  assessments  of  vulnerable  areas  &  ageing infrastructure and to identify the crossing of sewer lines in close proximity to water supply lines and to conduct digital mapping of the existing water and sewer network using geo-spatial database created under AMRUT/AMRUT 2.0 in order to prevent health hazards.

MoHUA  has  also  issued  an  advisory  "Strengthening  Water  Quality Monitoring in Cities through Community Participation" under AMRUT 2.0 in November, 2024 to all the States to formulate a Water Quality Monitoring strategy  at  the  State  or  City  level  and  to  strengthen  the  institutional capacity for citywide monitoring of drinking water quality in urban areas along with Digital Display Boards for water quality parameters for public information & awareness.

AMRUT/AMRUT  2.0  guidelines  allows  for  replacement  of  legacy infrastructure,  vulnerable  crossings  and  pressure-managed  systems  to reduce contamination risks as per priority of State.  Further, AMRUT 2.0 Mission promotes 24x7 water supply with quality assuran ce, Drink from Tap (DfT) quality water in selected District Metered Areas (DMAs)/wards, online water  quality  monitoring,  sensors  and  Supervisory  Control  and  Data Acquisition (SCADA), community participation, especially Women Self Help Groups (SHGs), in water quality testing.

Through AMRUT/ AMRUT 2.0 and in convergence with the States, 246 lakh water tap connections in the urban areas have been provided so far, 182 lakh sewer connections (including households covered through Fecal Sludge  and  Septage  Management  (FSSM))  have  been  provided  through AMRUT/ AMRUT 2.0 and in convergence in AMRUT Cities. 93,457.51 km of water pipeline network has been laid/ replaced and 26,995.61 km of sewer network has been laid/ replaced. Under  AMRUT,  258  water  supply  schemes  have  smart  monitoring systems such as  SCADA system and 1,422 water supply projects under AMRUT 2.0 has provision for SCADA system. Mission advocates ease of getting connections to minimize illegal connections. Mission has provision of  ₹3,000  per  connection  to  enhance  last  mile  connectivity.  Mission advocated to use of smart elements, flow meters, pressure valves, etc. to strengthen  maintenance  systems,  digital  monitoring,  energy  efficiency, etc. For  improvement  in  service  delivery,  States  have  taken  up  DfT projects and States are encouraged to implement at least one DfT project in a DMA or ward within each AMRUT city. 407 projects with 1,153 DMAs benefitting 16.72 lakh Households have been approv ed in 348 ULBs under AMRUT 2.0.

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