Urban News

The leniency shown by the Municipal Corporation towards payment defaulters is one of the causes for non-payment of water bills. Of the huge list of defaulters, only 30 to 35 per cent connections were disconnected for non-payment of bills; many were restored within a short period of time.

The civic body is yet to collect bills amounting to Rs 10 crore. Among the biggest defaulters are government departments; however, apart from writing letters to remind the departments to pay the bills, nothing much has been done. There are around 400 defaulters with pending bills worth Rs 50,000 and above each.

Among these are defaulters with pending bills going up to Rs 70 lakh. The list of defaulters with lesser amounts also runs long.

Councillor Dr A P Sanwaria says defaulters, no matter who they are, should be strictly dealt with. “Penalty should be uniform irrespective of the defaulter’s status. Every defaulter should be treated equally. There is a need to take more stringent measures if wastage of water has to be stopped. Lack of action ensures that people do not bother clearing the dues,” said Dr Sanwaria.

Officials claim that when they try to disconnect water supply, either people approach higher authorities to get a stay or there is political pressure. At times people make partial payments and the remaining amount is paid in instalments.

Councillor Harjinder Kaur, however, said defaulters should be dealt with strictness. The bills should be compounded and people asked to pay. In case of non-payment, the connection should be cut. 

The Municipal Corporation is contemplating hike in water tariff. It is part of reforms suggested for getting grants under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission.

One of the reasons given by the civic body for the hike is losses in supply of water.

Mayor Anu Chatrath said she would be studying the proposal for the proposed hike in detail.

“It would be ensured that the pending bills are recovered. The hike would be minimum as part of the losses by the Municipal Corporation can be compensated if the bills are recovered,” she added.