Solan MC battles financial crisis as water bill liability soars to Rs 83 crore
The Solan Municipal Corporation (MC) is grappling with a severe financial crisis as its water bill liability has soared to Rs 83.67 crore, following a steep hike in water charges implemented by the state government in September 2024.
The water tariff was raised nearly fourfold, from Rs 27.71 per kilo litre (PKL) to Rs 100 PKL, under a notification issued by the Jal Shakti Department on September 21, 2024. The hike applies to the Solan and Palampur MCs, where the Jal Shakti Department supplies water unlike other civic bodies that manage their own water supply.
Though the Congress-run MC decided not to pass on the revised rates to residents and bear the expenditure, the burden has worsened its financial health.
The hike contradicts the previous promise made by the Congress during the civic body elections to supply water at a subsidised rate of Rs 100 per household. Though residents are yet to receive bills reflecting the new rates, the hike has troubled them.
Two lift water schemes Giri and Ashwani rivers cater to Solan city. The revised water charges have considerably increased the monthly water charges of the civic body.
From Rs 51.83 lakh in September, the Giri river charges surged to Rs 2.04 crore in November and Rs 2.24 crore in December. Similarly, charges from the Ashwani river jumped from Rs 18.27 lakh in September to Rs 60.94 lakh in November and Rs 70.11 lakh in December.The combined bill for both schemes in April stood at Rs 3.44 crore and this would further add to the liability of the civic body which was incurring losses by charging old rates from the residents. The bill paid by the residents covers only a quarter of the actual cost.
This has deepened the civic body’s deficit, with no financial relief from the state government. An appeal to waive off long-standing dues has yielded no results.
BJP Councillor Shailendra Gupta said the Congress had defied its poll promise. He alleged that the Congress is shielding residents temporarily at the cost of the MC’s financial health. Earlier, a 10 per cent annual hike was implemented and this allowed the civic body to meet its requisite expenditure.
