Haryana: Ambala City Gets Rs 21.50 Crore Stormwater Drain and Rs 1.02 Crore Road to End Waterlogging

Former minister of state Aseem Goel laid the foundation stone in Ambala City on Tuesday, 3 November 2026, for a stormwater drain project worth around Rs 21.50 crore, aimed at giving the city a permanent solution to its long-standing waterlogging problem. The project is being executed by the Irrigation and Water Resources Department, and will build a concrete drain nearly 4.5 kilometres long and 20 feet wide to carry stormwater away from the city.

At the same ceremony, Goel also laid the foundation stone for strengthening the road stretching from near the Central Jail to the Government Senior Secondary Model Sanskriti School, at a cost of Rs 1.02 crore. The road work is expected to make movement easier for residents and students using this stretch every day, and the two projects together add up to about Rs 22.52 crore of new infrastructure work for Ambala City.

After laying the foundation stone, Goel said the drain would prove to be a crucial project for the city’s stormwater drainage, and that various development projects were being fast-tracked in Ambala City to strengthen infrastructure and provide relief to residents from waterlogging. He added that under the BJP government, a wave of development was sweeping across Haryana, and Ambala City too was advancing rapidly along this path.

Waterlogging has been a recurring trouble for Ambala City, particularly during heavy rain, when streets and low-lying areas fill with water and disrupt daily life. In July 2026, Goel joined district administration officials on an inspection of affected areas in the city and directed officials to speed up ongoing measures, including expanding the scope of the Ambala Drain and improving the cleaning and maintenance of drains along the highway in the Baldev Nagar and Gita Nagari areas. Officials have also pointed to a comprehensive drainage plan prepared by IIT Roorkee, drawn up with seven departments including Irrigation, Public Health Engineering, PWD, the Municipal Corporation, HSVP and Revenue, to provide lasting relief.

The new drain is part of a wider drainage push in Ambala. Separately, the Haryana government has approved administrative sanction of Rs 12.42 crore for a new stormwater drain along Old Delhi Road in Ambala City, from Jandli Flyover to Polytechnic Chowk, where the existing arrangements overflow during heavy rainfall and disrupt traffic. This Old Delhi Road project is a different project from the Rs 21.50 crore drain described above. Public Health Engineering and Public Works Minister Ranbir Gangwa has said Rs 80 crore has been earmarked under Urban Drainage and Flood Control for 2026-27, with several projects under way across the state to improve drainage networks, increase rainwater discharge capacity and reduce the risk of waterlogging and urban flooding.