Chandigarh: Punjab Revenue, Rehabilitation and Disaster Management and Water Supply and Sanitation Minister Hardeep Singh Mundian on Sunday hailed the Budget presented by Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema as progressive, visionary and people-centric, stating that the financial roadmap would significantly strengthen drinking water infrastructure and transparent governance across the state. He said the government has proposed a budgetary outlay of ₹1487 crore for the Water Supply and Sanitation Department in FY 2026–27 to expand access to safe drinking water and improve sanitation services across Punjab.
The Minister said the government will focus on completing and commissioning 11 major surface water projects to provide clean drinking water to 1230 quality-affected and water-stressed villages. In addition, drinking water mitigation works will be undertaken in 125 habitations and new projects will be launched in 88 uranium-affected areas to address contamination issues and safeguard public health. He also announced the launch of the “Nal Jal Mitra” drive, under which one trained individual in every Gram Panchayat will assist in operating and maintaining rural water supply systems to strengthen community participation and improve service delivery.
Highlighting other initiatives, Mundian said the government has taken several steps to make land and property services transparent and technology-driven through projects such as “Easy Jamabandi” and “Easy Registry”, which allow citizens to access land records and complete property registrations online. He also said that a new administrative complex will be established at Sri Anandpur Sahib to commemorate the 350th Martyrdom Anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur. The Minister added that the government has also introduced India’s first fully digital flood relief system to ensure geo-tagged surveys and direct transfer of relief funds to beneficiaries, significantly reducing delays in providing assistance to flood-affected families.
