Ludhiana's Smart City Water Supply Project Abandoned After Receiving ₹67.6 Crore
A flagship Smart City project in Ludhiana, designed to provide round-the-clock water supply to approximately 5,000 households in the city's most prominent neighborhoods, has been completely abandoned. The failed initiative has left behind open pits, a trail of repeatedly missed deadlines, and a massive, weed-covered excavation hole in the city's famous Rose Garden, symbolizing administrative failure.
Private Firm Paid 95% of Funds Despite Incomplete Work
Despite receiving a staggering ₹67.6 crore—which represents about 95% of the total project cost of ₹71.1 crore—the private firm contracted for the critical infrastructure work has left the project incomplete for over a full year. Municipal Corporation authorities have taken no visible punitive action against the company, even as the latest official deadline of June 30, 2025, passed months ago without any progress.
When questioned about the ongoing stalemate, MC Superintending Engineer Ekjot Singh openly admitted the firm had failed to finish the essential job. "We are trying to ensure the firm completes the pending work as soon as possible," Ekjot Singh stated. However, he provided no concrete timeline for completion and offered no explanation for why nearly the entire project fund was released to the contractor before the work was properly verified as complete.
Project Designed as Political Reward for High-Vote Areas
The ambitious water supply project was specifically designed to reward residents of Ghumar Mandi, Sarabha Nagar, Maharaj Nagar, Maya Nagar, and Gurdev Nagar. These affluent areas were placed on a priority development list primarily because they provided the highest volume of votes when Ludhiana was competing fiercely to be selected among the top 20 cities under the National Smart City Mission.
While the city continues to wait for a massive World Bank-funded canal-based water project, this smaller ₹71.1 crore initiative was meant to serve as an immediate interim solution. The plan involved using tube-wells and sophisticated underground storage tanks to provide Ludhiana with reliable 24/7 water supply, addressing urgent civic needs.
Visible Failure at Ludhiana's Iconic Landmarks
The project's dramatic failure is visibly evident at two of Ludhiana's most popular public landmarks: Leisure Valley and the Rose Garden. At Leisure Valley, a substantial civil structure for an underground water storage tank was constructed but remains completely unfinished and non-functional. Meanwhile, at the famous Rose Garden, a massive pit excavated for another crucial storage tank has been entirely abandoned, now overrun by wild vegetation, weeds, and neglect.
Although water supply pipelines were successfully laid along some neighborhood streets, the entire system remains completely non-operational without the completion of these critical storage and pressure-management tanks. The infrastructure gap renders the partial work useless for residents still awaiting reliable water access.
Chronicle of Delays and Political Inaugurations
The project has been plagued by political optics and severe administrative inertia since its very inception. Official work orders were formally handed over in March 2019. Remarkably, the project was inaugurated not once but twice—first in 2018 and then again in 2022 following a significant change in the state government leadership.
The original completion deadline was set for July 31, 2021. This date was extended multiple times due to consistent delays, with the final extended deadline of June 2025 also being completely ignored by the contracting firm. The pattern of missed deadlines highlights systemic failures in project monitoring and contractor accountability within municipal governance.
The abandoned Smart City water project now stands as a stark reminder of wasted public funds and unfulfilled promises, leaving Ludhiana residents without the essential water infrastructure they were promised through national urban development initiatives.
