SRINAGAR: A detailed project report for the permanent restoration of the 600 mm and 500 mm Sitlee to Lohar Manda rising mains, damaged in the flash floods of August 25, 2025, has been prepared and submitted for funding, the government told the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly on Tuesday, but the release of funds is still pending.
The department said the DPR covers restoration of the two rising mains, work it described as urgent after the floods left parts of Jammu West, East and North constituencies without reliable drinking water and residents “deprived of the drinking water for more than one month”. The DPR and a related proposal have been forwarded to the Deputy Commissioner, Jammu and to the Disaster Management Relief Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Department and the Finance Department for release of funds; the department said the releases are awaited.
The Housing and Urban Development Department told the Assembly that tube wells at Women Polytechnic College, Jammu and near the Forest Office by Kamdhenu Flats have been taken up under AMRUT 2.0, and a few other improvement works are underway across Jammu West. The department shared data of 25 sectoral projects — ranging from pipeline replacements and distribution main repairs to new pump installations — with project costs spanning a wide range and varying physical progress. Several works are recorded as “physically completed but financially incomplete”, while others are at procurement or technical evaluation stages.
The reply also noted a defunct tube well at Patoli Park. Redevelopment or restoration of that tube well is “under active consideration” and is proposed to be taken up under the district CAPEX budget for 2026–27.
Officials said a separate proposal for rehabilitation of infrastructure damaged during the floods, including the Sitlee–Manda rising mains, has also been submitted to the Disaster Management Relief, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Department and the Finance Department. The department would not confirm a date for the release of funds or provide a timetable for the completion of the rising mains restoration in its written response.
The data attached to the reply lists projects such as pipe interconnections, replacement of worn-out pipes, provision of pump sets at multiple locations, and construction works connected with water supply for pilgrim circuits and local wards. Project values cited in the data are about Rs 100.49 lakh for larger items, with many projects showing progress markers such as 35 per cent, 70 per cent, 80 per cent or 100 per cent completion physically but still awaiting final financial closure.
The department attributed the need for the DPR and additional proposals to the severe damage caused by the flash floods on August 25, 2025. It said the primary route to secure necessary funds is through district disaster resources and central relief channels, and it has approached the relevant authorities accordingly.
Despite assurances that planned works and AMRUT projects will “substantially strengthen the water supply infrastructure”, the reply does not supply a concrete completion schedule for restoration of the Sitlee–Lohar Manda rising mains or a firm date for when normal water supplies will be fully restored across the affected constituencies.
