Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Tuesday said that raising the water tariff in Bengaluru has become inevitable as the Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) water board is facing an annual loss of Rs 1,000 crore.
He told media that he has directed officials to prepare a report on the proposed water tariff increase. After meeting the officials of the Bengaluru civic agencies at Cauvery Bhavan, Shivakumar said, “I have asked officials to submit a report on the water tariff hike, a decision will be taken soon. We are also taking steps to measure water consumption accurately."
He pointed out that the water tariff has not been increased since 2014 which has led to an annual loss of Rs 1,000 crore for the BWSSB. "The electricity bill for the Board has increased from Rs 35 crore to Rs 75 crore," he added. Shivakumar who holds the Bengaluru development portfolio elucidated, “Water tariff hike has become inevitable. The officials of the BWSSB have had discussions with all the MLAs of the city. The Board is finding it difficult to raise funds as the banks are refusing to lend due to the losses."
Shivakumar emphasised that even the poor should contribute a token amount like one paise per litre to help the Board accurately measure water usage. The Minister also lashed out at the BJP recalling that the previous Congress government had allocated Rs 20 crore to provide water to slums and the urban poor, but the BJP government halted the initiative.
However, he assured people that the govt plans to revive the scheme for the urban poor, although water usage will be measured even if a token charge is applied. “The water supplied to slums is being misused in many places. We have formulated a plan to collect accurate information on water consumption across the city. The illegal connections must be regularised,” he added.
Regarding preparations for the summer when the crisis remains at its peak, Shivakumar said officials have been directed to take necessary steps to ensure that Bengaluru does not face any water shortage this summer. "We have instructed officials to expedite filling up tanks to charge groundwater in the city."
(With inputs from PTI)
