WAJAHAT SHABIR
SRINAGAR: Jammu & Kashmir is facing a substantial gap between sewage generation and treatment capacity, with the Union Territory generating 523 million litres per day (MLD) of sewage against an existing sewage treatment capacity of 242.4 MLD, according to a report of the Standing Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs.
The figures are part of the committee’s Tenth Report on “Review of Sewerage and Septage Coverage in Cities with special reference to interventions under AMRUT & AMRUT 2.0”, presented to Parliament in August 2026. The report examines the country’s urban sewerage and septage infrastructure and includes state- and UT-wise data on J&K at several points.
The J&K figures mean that the existing treatment capacity accounts for only about 46.3 percent of the sewage generated, leaving a gap of approximately 280.6 MLD.
The report’s state-wise sewage management table, based on information furnished before the National Green Tribunal and reports of pollution control authorities, records 523 MLD sewage generation, 242.4 MLD existing STP capacity and 242.4 MLD capacity utilisation for J&K.
The report also provides a picture of household-level sanitation coverage in J&K.
According to the State/UT-wise data based on City Water Balance Plans for 2025, J&K has 120,073 households covered by sewer connections, while another 213,352 households are covered through septage connections.
Thus, the data records 333,425 households covered through either sewer or septage connections, with septage-based sanitation accounting for a substantially larger share than direct sewer connections.
The committee noted that urban sanitation across India continues to be characterised by the coexistence of sewered and on-site sanitation systems, with significant variations between States and UTs.
Only 76 km of sewer network laid under AMRUT. J&K’s sewerage network expansion also shows a sizeable planned component.
The report states that under AMRUT, J&K had 82.22 km of sewer network planned, of which 76.03 km had been laid. Under AMRUT 2.0, another 272.17 km of sewer network had been planned for J&K. The corresponding “network laid” figure is not shown in the table for J&K.
The report presents another stark figure for J&K: only 2.50 MLD of treated wastewater reuse capacity.
The figure comes in the Ministry’s State/UT-wise assessment of wastewater reuse capacity, based on information provided by States to the NGT and a CPHEEO study. J&K’s 2.50 MLD is listed alongside much higher capacities reported by several other States.
The committee notes that AMRUT has mandated an overall 20 percent reuse of treated wastewater, with 40 percent of industrial demand to be met through reuse.
Against that broader objective, the J&K figure indicates that wastewater reuse remains a relatively small component of its urban sanitation system.
₹44.08 crore worth of AMRUT projects still have ₹40.07 crore of work remaining. The report’s assessment of ongoing AMRUT projects shows four projects in J&K, having a total project cost of ₹44.08 crore. Of this, only ₹4.0045 crore is recorded as physically completed, while work worth ₹40.0755 crore remains.
In percentage terms, this translates into roughly 9.1 percent physical completion, with around 90.9 percent of the project value still remaining.
The committee said delays in various States and UTs have been attributed to factors including tendering and procurement delays, land acquisition, statutory clearances, contractor-related problems, limited technical capacity at the ULB level and disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
₹333.60 crore central assistance released out of ₹867 crore committed. The financial position under AMRUT also shows that J&K had 56 cities in which projects were taken up.
Against ₹867 crore in committed Central Assistance, the Union Territory had received ₹333.60 crore, representing 38.48 percent of the committed amount. The State/ULB and other sources’ assistance is recorded at ₹135.37 crore. The relatively low release percentage is notable in the context of the broader implementation concerns examined by the committee, although the report does not specifically attribute the unreleased amount in J&K to any particular reason.
38 MLD STP capacity under AMRUT and AMRUT 2.0. The committee’s infrastructure data also records sewage treatment plants supported under the two AMRUT phases.
For J&K, two STPs with a combined capacity of 8 MLD under AMRUT are shown as completed/functional. Under AMRUT 2.0, the table records 30 MLD capacity, with 30 MLD shown as completed/functional.
This gives J&K a recorded 38 MLD of STP capacity across the two AMRUT phases, although this should not be confused with the UT’s total existing STP capacity of 242.4 MLD reported separately in the NGT-based table.
Three AMRUT 2.0 sewerage and septage projects all grounded/awarded, none completed. The report’s project-status appendix provides another J&K-specific snapshot. It lists three planned sewerage and septage projects under AMRUT 2.0, with an approved total project cost of ₹373.35 crore. All three projects, involving ₹330.44 crore, are shown under the Grounded/Awarded category, representing 100 percent of the planned projects. However, none had been recorded as completed, while all three were listed as ongoing.
