Privatised sewerage on hold in Ludhiana, panel demands cleaner deal.

Ludhiana: A sweeping plan to hand over the city's entire sewer network to the private sector has been flushed — for now. While the Finance Committee cleared 100 other projects, a push for privatized maintenance met stiff resistance, with leaders demanding a "special committee" to ensure the city isn't being taken for a ride.A idea of transforming Ludhiana's urban landscape has hit a political bottleneck, as senior officials locked horns over "supplementary" agendas and a controversial push to privatize the city's sewer system. The Finance and Contracts Committee (F and CC) met on Friday at the mayor's camp office to approve a massive slate of resolutions involving road construction and water infrastructure. However, the session was marred by procedural disputes and a heated exchange over the influence of local lawmakers on street-level enforcement.The committee granted formal consent for a wide array of infrastructure works, including the installation of new tube wells and extensive road surfacing. This latest tranche of approvals adds to 205 resolutions passed in previous sessions. Despite the progress, the committee demonstrated a "zero-tolerance" approach to poor workmanship.A contractor firm was debarred from future nunicipal corporation (MC) tenders after an audit revealed the use of substandard materials and a failure to meet project specifications. A proposal to outsource the maintenance of city central verges to private companies was paused. Members instead called for a special committee to audit current private maintenance contracts to ensure value for money.A major resolution by the Operation and Maintenance cell to hand over the city's entire sewerage network to private contractors remains in limbo. The committee deferred the decision, opting instead to form a high-level mayoral committee to oversee the potential hiring of outsourced sweepers and sewer cleaners.The meeting turned tense when deputy mayor Prince Johar demanded the immediate removal of illegal street vendors (rehdis) on Gill Road, citing severe traffic congestion. The exchange exposed a rift between civic officials and political interests. Officials claimed that whenever they attempt to clear the roads, local members of the legislative assembly (MLAs) intervened to halt the action.An incensed Johar threatened to protest against his own administration's inaction, noting that officials had used the same "political pressure" excuse to ignore reports of illegal buildings.