Deccan Chronicle 11.11.2009

Jail likely for water theft

Bengaluru, Nov. 10: At a time when utility bills are sky-rocketing, saving money by drawing water illegally may seem tempting. But, this could land you behind bars for a solid three years.

In order to crack the whip against those with illegal water connections, the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) plans to legally amend the rules to slap a hefty penalty and imprisonment of up to three years on the guilty. The bill, which will be introduced in the state legislature shortly, will be applicable to BWSSB employees and licensed plumbers involved as well.

BWSSB will soon launch a project estimated to cost Rs 260 crore to monitor unaccounted water by detecting illegal connections, old and defunct meters and replacing leaking pipelines in the south division of the city. Presently, BWSSB is able to meet the water requirements of only 40 to 45 per cent of the city covering 300 sq. km out of 800.29 sq. km.

Though there is a demand for 1125 mld (million litres per day), it is able to supply only 870 mld. About 48 per cent of the water supplied is non-revenue water (NRW). “About 10 to 15 per cent of NRW is unaccounted for due to misuse of water supplied in slums, seven per cent due to unauthorised connections and another seven per cent defunct meters,” says chief engineer T. Venkatraju.

The new project, which will be taken up with financial aid from Japan Bank for International Cooperation, will be implemented by 2010, said BWSSB chairman P.B. Ramamurthy. “Once the project is implemented, we will extend it to other divisions also,” he informed.