MLAs unhappy, Sidhu warns to blacklist firms laying sewerage

Sidhu set the deadline of one month for works saying he would not only blacklist companies but also file criminal cases against those wasting hard-earned public money.

With Congress MLAs expressing displeasure over sewerage works being done by various companies in their segments, Punjab local government minister Navjot Singh Sidhu on Tuesday warned to blacklist these companies if they fail to meet expectations.

Navjot Singh Sidhu (HT File Photo)

The minister was presiding over a review meeting of eight clusters with the representatives of companies here in the presence of his cabinet colleagues Vijay Inder Singla and Sunder Sham Arora, some MLAs and senior department officials.

Sidhu set the deadline of one month for works saying he would not only blacklist companies but also file criminal cases against those wasting hard-earned public money. Unhappy over the functioning of the WAPCOS and Engineers India Limited (EIL) engaged in financial and technical audit, Sidhu said had these parties conducted audit in a forthright manner complaints with regards to sewerage works wouldn’t have arisen. Singla, who is MLA from Sangrur, said the company was not executing work properly.

MLA Kuljit Singh Nagra said sub-pipes of sewerage were laid at Fatehgarh Sahib right before the last year’s elections but the main line was not laid. He said the company also doesn’t have the requisite machinery and people are facing harassment and no attention is being paid to the quality control.