Guwahati: The Opposition Congress on Sunday sought a CBI probe into “potential” lapses in the execution of the Centre’s flagship Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) in Assam.

Assam PCC president Bhupen Kumar Borah made the demand for the CBI investigation based on an October 3 letter by the state public health and engineering (PHE) department, Kailash Karthik, to the chief engineer, additional chief engineer, superintending engineers and executive engineers of the department under the subject “Declaration of Standstill Period & Quality audit of all JJM Schemes”.

Citing the content of the letter, Borah said there were grounds to seek a thorough probe and accountability from the government as the PHE secretary’s letter calls for a comprehensive review of all ongoing/completed JJM projects over the possibility of “potential lapse in both project management and quality assurance”.

The letter also refers to “deviation” from DPR and “oversight” by third-party inspection agencies, he said.

“There is now concern among both the public (whether they will get tape water) and contractors (whether they will get paid for work done) about the fate of the projects”, Borah said, while taking a dig at the BJP-led state and central government.

“The JMM slogan is Har Ghar Jal but I am afraid it will soon be Har Ghar Nal (water tape) but no Jal,” he said apprehending closure of schemes.

He also expressed concern over contractors’ allegation shared with him that “eight to 15 per cent of the contract amount has to be paid to secure JJM contracts”, a claim which required a probe.

The PHED secretary letter states that “performance of some contractors under the JJM has not aligned with the established project deadlines. The issued work orders for the Single Village Schemes mandated a completion timeline of six months. However, continuous requests for extension of timelines by some of the contractors reveal non-compliance with the project objectives, indicating potential lapse in both the project management and quality assurance”. The letter also said execution of the schemes “indicates poor oversight by the Third Party Inspection Agencies as well who have been engaged to ensure timely execution and quality assurance”.

The department also “felt that an assessment of the performance of some of the DPR Agencies is also to be examined”.

The PHED has, among others, directed a “halt to construction activities temporarily of ongoing schemes till further instructions are provided following the Audit”, which included steps to initiate a “comprehensive” review of the “current status of all ongoing/completed schemes” with focus on identifying the “reasons for deviation from project plans for some contractors, assessing the quantity and quality of work delivered, and determining the root causes of delays, if any.”