Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly Ramvir Singh Bidhuri on Friday charged that due to the corruption, incompetence and ineffectiveness of the Kejriwal government, the loss of Delhi Jal Board has become as much as the total budget of Delhi. He also demanded a CBI probe into the functioning of the Delhi Jal Board as he Delhi Jal Board has not been audited after 2017-18.
Bidhuri said the total budget of Delhi for 2023-24 was Rs 73 thousand crores and the deficit of Jal Board has also crossed Rs 73 thousand crores. The situation is still not stable and the financial condition of Delhi Jal board is such that it does not have money even for minor repairs, Bidhuri said.
Only last week, Rs 537 crore has been released but the outstanding bills of contractors only worth more than Rs 1,000 crore. Bidhuri said Delhi Jal Board had a surplus of Rs 600 crore in 2013-14, but due to wrong policies and corruption, the Jal Board has reached ruin in just nine years.
Bidhuri said in the recent session of the Delhi Assembly, he had asked the government a question on the deficit of the Jal Board, in which the answer came that in the year 2022-23 itself, the Delhi Jal Board has incurred a debt of Rs 73, 196.55 crore. In the current financial year i.e. 2023-24, it must have reached Rs. 80 thousand crores.
Bidhuri reminded that the budget presented by the Delhi government for 2023-24 was a total of Rs 73,760 crore, that is, even if the entire budget of Delhi is spent on the Delhi Jal Board, its deficit will not be covered. He said the Jal Board has become a mine of corruption in which no matter how much revenue is invested, its losses keep increasing. A total of Rs 6342 crore was given to Delhi Jal Board in this year's budget. Even this did not work.
Recently, in the affidavit filed by Delhi Water Minister Atishi before the High Court, it has been said the Jal Board does not have money even for minor repairs, he said.
Last week, Rs 537.1 crore has been released for the Jal Board, but it is like a drop in the ocean because the outstanding amount of more than Rs 1021 crore is due to the contractors who have completed the Jal Board projects and submitted the bills. Owing to Delhi Jal Board not having money for payment, they have stopped working further, Bidhuri said.
