Govt sets up high-powered panel to restructure Jal Board

The private players will also be given management responsibilities,he added. “This is the last frontier we have to fight. We have to ensure 24×7 water supply,and there should be no losses during supply,” Tripathi added.

The committee was set up a week after the Planning Commission told the Delhi government to initiate long-term reform measures to bring efficiency in the water sector,considering Delhi’s increasing requirement.

At a meeting with Dikshit last week,Planning Commission Deputy Chairperson Montek Singh Ahluwalia had told her to initiate long-term planning in conservation,treatment and efficient distribution of water,keeping the city’s ever-increasing population in mind.

The decision was taken at a meeting presided by Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit,who is also DJB chairperson,and attended by top government brass.

Dikshit later said the government will make the water sector the biggest priority in the 12th Five Year Plan. The Commission had also suggested working out a 10-year plan to improve water treatment and distribution as well as sewerage treatment facilities in the city.