After residents fall sick due to ‘contaminated water’, Greater Noida Authority orders audit of pipelines, reservoirs

GNIDA forms technical panel to audit Greater Noida water supply after illness complaints and Indore contamination deaths prompt review

In the wake of complaints of residents falling ill in parts of Greater Noida after allegedly consuming contaminated water, the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) constituted a high-level technical committee on Friday to review the city’s water supply system and has ordered an urgent audit of pipelines, reservoirs and water ATMs.

The decision was taken at a high-level review meeting chaired by Ravi Kumar N G, GNIDA Chief Executive Officer (CEO), who, according to a statement to the press, has warned officials that negligence in ensuring public services would not be tolerated. The meeting reviewed issues related to public health, sanitation and core infrastructure across the city.

According to officials, the committee, which will comprise officials from the Water Department, has been tasked with identifying leakages and corrosion in pipelines and checking the purity of drinking water supplied in different sectors.

Water samples will be collected from multiple locations, and the committee has been directed to submit a detailed report at the earliest, they added.

The review comes days after residents of Noida’s Delta 1 reported symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhoea, fever and stomach pain, allegedly after consuming contaminated water. However, GNIDA has maintained that no evidence of contamination has been found in the water in Delta 1.

Meanwhile, GNIDA said the decision to review the city’s water supply was triggered by recent deaths after allegedly consuming contaminated water in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore.

During the meeting, the CEO also reviewed the progress of the 80 cusecs Ganga water project and directed officials to ensure its completion by January this year. The project aims to supply treated Ganga water to all sectors and villages of Greater Noida and is nearing completion after delays due to land acquisition and legal hurdles.

Infrastructure and sanitation issues were also discussed at the meeting. A special team has been constituted to improve road infrastructure in the city, officials said. The team has inspected the entire stretch of Master Plan Road 3 in the city and will submit a detailed action plan within 15 days, they added.

The CEO further expressed dissatisfaction over delays in pond construction and issued a final warning to contractors and officials to expedite the work. Kumar also directed the purchase of mechanised machines for cleaning and medium-sized equipment for drain maintenance to modernise sanitation services.