Dist min seeks report on Jalasiri project

Mangaluru: District minister Dinesh Gundu Rao sought a detailed progress report on the Jalasiri 24x7 drinking water project for Mangaluru city, which began in 2019, and was supposed to be completed by May 2023.
Despite starting five years ago, the project has only achieved 45% completion, officials reported at a Karnataka Development Programme (KDP) review meeting chaired by the minister on Friday.The minister expressed ire over the slow progress, when informed that of the planned 1,280km of pipeline laying work in the city, only 700km has been completed so far. The deadline for the completion of the ADB-funded Jalasiri project, which is being implemented at an estimated cost of Rs 792 crore, was extended to May 2024. However, with only 45% of the work completed, officials from the Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development and Finance Corporation (KUIDFC) indicated that the project could be finished by March 2025.
Meanwhile, MLC Ivan D’Souza said that the project was neither completed, nor efforts made to restore the roads that are dug up for laying pipelines.
Officials also highlighted that delays in shifting utility lines have hampered the progress of the work. The minister criticised officials for the significant delay, and stated that the commissioner of the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) would be held accountable. “I will personally inspect the works and hold a review meeting soon,” the minister declared, requesting a report on the project’s progress.
In the meantime, regarding the Jal Jeevan Mission, Dakshina Kannada zilla panchayat CEO Anandh K mentioned that the district’s goal is to provide drinking water connections to 90,388 houses. “We have already provided drinking water connections to 53,297 households, and work is in progress to connect the remaining 37,091 houses,” he added.