The AAP Government faced a major embarrassment on Monday as the Supreme Court rapped it for approaching the court for resumption of water supply to Delhi instead of resolving the problem at Government-to-Government level. “You rest in AC chambers and you want order from the court,” the SC observed.
Meanwhile, the Delhi Government on Monday said it is expecting to restore by late evening 25% of water supply.
A Bench of Chief Justice TS Thakur and Justice UU lalit was even reluctant to take up the plea of the AAP Government. “You people, instead of solving the problem at Government-to-Government level, are moving Supreme Court. You want order from the Supreme Court. You want everything on a platter. You Ministers are sitting in the court instead of going to the field,” the Bench said while referring to the presence of Delhi Water Minister Kapil Mishra inside the court.
However, after repeated insistence from senior advocate Rajeev Dhawan, appearing for the Delhi Government, the Bench asked the Haryana Government to make the necessary arrangement for resumption of water supply in the Capital. The water supply has been disrupted due to the ongoing Jat quota stir.
Meanwhile, the Delhi Government on Monday said it is expecting to restore by late evening 25 per cent of water supply in the city after after security forces took over control of the Munak canal and evicted all the Jat protesters from that place.
However, Delhi’s water crisis is likely to remain for the next four to five days as the canal and sewage line of Munak have been badly damaged. According to officials, it will take at least 48 hours to restore the canal to the operational status. Munak Canal, the city’s lifeline, provides water to the Bawana, Dwarka, Haiderpur and Nangloi plants. These plants will start functioning after water supply is restored from Munak Canal in Haryana.
Sluice gates at Khubru and Gadbidroli, part of the Munak canal, were badly damaged and repair works were going on in full swing, the sources said, adding all protesters who were squatting at the site, were evicted.
Director General of CRPF Prakash Mishra said “part supply” has been restored by security forces from the Munak canal by joint forces led by a CRPF Deputy Inspector General (DIG) who took control of the canal early today at about 4 am.