Rs 1,169 crore World Bank plan to boost Shimla water supply

Subhash Rajta
Tribune News Service
Shimla, June 3

Negotiations for the release of $160 million (Rs 1,169 crore) for the Shimla Water Supply and Sewerage Services Improvement Programme are going on between the state government and World Bank.

3-fold objective

• Pressurised 24x7 water supply to Shimla, nearby areas
• Bulk water supply from Sutlej
• Laying robust sewerage system in city, peripheral areas

“The World Bank has already given in-principle approval for the plan. The negotiations, through the Department of Economic Affairs relating to terms and conditions, are likely to conclude tomorrow,” said Dharmendra Gill, MD, Shimla Jal Prabandhan Nigam Limited, who is part of the negotiation team. The programme was initiated in 2018 following a severe water crisis in the city. Two years before that, the city had witnessed a massive jaundice outbreak when sewage was found in a water source in Solan.

“The project was to be funded by the World Bank through development policy loan in three phases. We had received $40 million for the first phase. But with the outbreak of Covid, the bank stopped the funding last year,” said Gill. The Urban Development Department and SJPNL again pursued the matter. “We stared afresh and have asked for $160 million for the project. This is in addition to the $40 million we received in 2018,” said Gill.