The Times of India 04.11.2013
Pune Municipal Corporation recovers Rs 185-crore water tax dues
PUNE: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has recovered pending water tax worth around Rs 185 crore. The money has been recovered over the last three years from those using metered water.
In a written reply given to the query of an elected member, the civic administration has claimed that the meters include both residential and commercial ones. There are 22,000 residential meters, and around 15,000 non-residential meters installed in PMC limits.
According to figures with the water department, it has recorded a constant increase in recovery of water charges from users opting for the metered supply. The water charges recovered in 2010-11 were Rs 54.52 crore, in 2011-12 the figure stood at Rs 61.83 crore and in 2012-13, it stands at Rs 67.87 crore.
The administration has undertaken a project to install water meters in all 7.5 lakh properties in the city, given that the Union government is pressing for metered water supply in all cities that receive funds under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) to ensure that civic bodies recover water supply costs.
The civic body has planned a pilot project of metered supply of water in five areas - Sahakarnagar, Rajas Society in Katraj, Vimannagar, Bhavani Peth and Nagpur Chawl. Nearly 6,000 meters will be installed in these areas.
Installing water meters could help determine loss due to leakage or other reasons and will help calculate water tax based on consumption, develop an equitable water distribution system and offer the same water pressure in different parts of the city.
A few years back, the PMC had tried to introduce metered water supply, claiming that it would help calculate the water tax accurately. However, the PMC general body scrapped the system for domestic users and has been billing them on the basis of the annual ratable value of their properties. Domestic users had complained of faulty meters and inflated billing, which had resulted in the accumulation of water tax dues worth crores of rupees.
