Water tariff shocker for Mohali residents

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 4

In a major shock to consumers, drinking water has become costlier in Mohali. The tariff of the essential commodity has gone up manifold, which will now be much more than Chandigarh.

The domestic consumers have been hit the most as they will have to pay up to 5.5 times more than the current tariff. From Rs 1.8 per kilolitre flat, being charged at present, the domestic water tariff has been raised to Rs 10 per kilolitre for consumption above 20 kilolitres while the consumption of the first 20 kilolitres will be charged at Rs 5 per kilolitre.

While institutional, government, semi-government and all other commercial and industrial establishments will have to pay double (Rs 10 per kilolitre) from the present charge of Rs 5 per kilolitre, the water used in industrial, semi-industrial and commercial establishments for construction and renovation purposes will be charged at 1.5 per cent of the total construction cost or Rs 20 per sq ft, whichever is more, against the present flat tariff of Rs 5 per kilolitre.

In a first, the water tariff has been fixed for private construction by virtue of which “no covered area was generated”. Now, these consumers will be charged 1.5 per cent of the total work cost.

A decision to this effect was taken at a meeting of the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA), chaired by the Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh, who is the GMADA Chairman, in Chandigarh recently.

Surprisingly, the new water tariff will be applicable to Sector 66 to 69, 76 to 80, Aero City and Eco City, where water supply is still under the control of GMADA. There are over 12,000 water consumers in these areas. The rest of Mohali will continue to pay the current charges till the Local Government Department revises the water tariff.

However, the revised GMADA water tariff will also be implemented by all other development authorities in the state.

According to the GMADA proposal, which was approved, the authority was spending Rs 4.9 crore on the maintenance and operation of the water supply and sewerage schemes in Sector 66 to 69 only while during the last fiscal (2016-17), only Rs 1.12 crore was realised from the tariff, which was 437.5 per cent less than the expenditure. At present, GMADA is charging the water tariff on a par with the charges of the Mohali Municipal Corporation.

The GMADA Chief Engineer proposed that keeping in view the huge gap between the expenditure and the tariff, the water tariff of HUDA, being charged in Panchkula, which was up to 2.5 times more than the current tariff, should be replicated in the GMADA areas.

Security deposit up

The one-time security deposit (refundable) for new water connections and charges for installing private tubewells on private premises have also been raised manifold.

MC to follow suit

To bring uniformity in the water tariff, the Mohali MC will also follow suit and hike the water tariff to bring it on a par with the revised GMADA charges.