Customers will get a whopping 50 percent discount on their unpaid bills from 1995 to Jan 1, 2005. Those who avail the offer will be struck off the list of defaulters and their connections will be restored. HMWS&SB Managing Director MT Krishna Babu told Expresso that the OTS was the board’s New Year gift to defaulters.

Customers can settle their arrears by contacting the General Manager (Engineer) of Operation and Maintenance (O&M) Divisions of their respective areas on any working day.

Under the scheme, which will be in force up to February 28, for all 15 mm diameter connections a 50 percent reduction in arrears as on January 1, 2005 will be given, he said.

For example, if a defaulter owes the Water Board Rs 50,000, accumulated between 1995 and 2004, he or she can pay just Rs 25,000 in lump sum and settle the account. There are about 1.73 lakh defaulters who owe about Rs 56 crore. The Water Board is expected to net Rs 20 to Rs 28 crore if the majority of the consumers settle their cases.

The board felt justified in giving the discount for bills up to Jan, 2005 as it thought that the quantity of water supplied till that period was a bit restricted and bills were also not issued regularly to consumers. Besides there was no Krishna drinking water supply scheme during that period. From January 2005, however, the quantity of water supplied increased after the commissioning of the Krishna Phase I and II. Therefore, the one-time settlement scheme was not being extended to the defaulters since 2005, the MD said.

If the defaulters failed to utilise The offer, the board would disconnect their supply lines by taking up a special drive from March, Krishna Babu said.