HC seeks answers on ‘missing’ Smart City water plants:Notices issued to officials in Indore; response sought in 4 weeks

The Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court has taken a strict view of the disappearance and shutdown of drinking water plants installed under the Smart Cities Mission in Indore. The court asked the state government and municipal administration to explain what happened to the water plants installed after spending crores of rupees. The matter was heard on Friday by a division bench of Justice Vijay Kumar Shukla and Justice Alok Awasthi. Advocates Manish Yadav and Shobhit Gupta appeared on behalf of petitioner and former councillor Mahesh Garg. Water plants installed at cost of ₹3.5 crore According to the petition, the previous council had installed drinking water plants across several major intersections and public areas in the city under the Smart City Mission at a cost of nearly ₹3.5 crore. The project was aimed at providing clean drinking water facilities to the public. The maintenance and regular inspection of these units had also been assigned to concerned authorities. However, after initially functioning at several prominent locations, the water plants allegedly stopped operating and later disappeared completely. Public forced to buy drinking water during heatwave The petitioner’s counsel informed the court that residents are struggling to access drinking water during the ongoing heatwave and many people are being forced to buy water. In such circumstances, the disappearance of water plants installed using public funds is a serious issue, the court was told. Taking the matter seriously, the High Court issued notices to the Principal Secretary of the Urban Administration Department, the Indore Municipal Corporation Commissioner, the Executive Engineer of the Narmada Water Distribution Department, and the Superintendent Engineer of Smart City. The court has directed all respondents to submit their replies within four weeks. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for June 15.