Kolkata: The budget proposal for the 2026-27 financial year which the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) placed on Friday has special focus on augmentation of drinking water supply and modernisation of the drainage and sewerage system with the assistance of govt schemes.
BMC mayor Krishna Chakraborty, in her budget speech, mentioned that the civic body was striving to meet demand for drinking water. The authorities have already received approval of Rs 379.4 crore funds under the AMRUT 2.0 scheme in the first phase for undertaking purified drinking water projects.
Among the ongoing work under the scheme, work of connecting purified drinking water to every house in wards 22 to 26, covering a large area of Kestopur and adjoining places, and in wards 38 and 39, is almost over. The drinking water supply project in wards 28, 35 and 36 adjacent to Salt Lake is ongoing, with about one-third of the target implemented so far. Work on constructing infrastructure for the purified drinking water supply system in wards 1 to 21, covering Rajarhat Gopalpur, just began, and the renovation of 15 overhead reservoirs in Salt Lake is also nearing completion.
The civic body expects to implement work worth Rs 95 crore for augmentation of drinking water supply this year under the AMRUT 2.0 scheme. Besides, they have proposed a Rs 108 crore budgetary allocation for overall improvement of water supply services across all its 41 wards.
As for further developing the drainage and sewerage system, the civic authorities have proposed a budget allocation of Rs 25.5 crore, and plans are in place to modernise sewerage pumping stations with state support. Four drop pumping stations has already been built in areas adjacent to the Eastern drainage canal for quick discharge of accumulated water in Salt Lake and Rajarhat areas, and the plan is to build two more drop pumping stations in the Salt Lake part, along with setting up new drainage lines in the Rajarhat area which do not have planned drainage and sewerage systems.
The urban development and municipal affairs dept has accorded approval of a Rs 46.7 crore scheme for collection and management of household liquid waste and establishing a new sewerage treatment plant to control pollution of the Bagjola canal.