Parliament Question: Contaminated Drinking Water Supply

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---march-2024.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 assurance, 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 approved in 348 ULBs under AMRUT 2.0. *****