The Hindu 09.10.2013
‘Buildings without RWH unit will not be assessed’
Buildings will not be assessed for various government taxes if they are not provided with suitable Rain Water Harvesting (RWH) facilities, Municipal Commissioner K.Sivakumar has said.
He was speaking to the Hindu on the sidelines of an awareness rally on the need for Rain Water Harvesting (RWH) structures organised by the civic administration here on Monday.
Chairman of Udhagamandalam Municipal Council K.Sathyabama flagged off the rally that emphasized the growing need for rain water harvesting structures to combat the vagaries of the monsoon.
Mr.Sivakumar told The Hindu that the erratic rainfall pattern over the past few years has forced the municipality to alter the water distribution system and henceforth the dependence on stored rain water would be more.
Stating that the municipality has for the past few years been insisting on RWH structures, he said that most of the 20,000 domestic and commercial buildings within the municipal area are now equipped with such structures.
However many of them are damaged. The owners have been asked to repair them. Around 1800 new constructions need to be equipped with RWH structures. They will not be assessed for property tax, water tax and so on if they are not provided with suitable RWH facilities. Special teams have been formed to ensure compliance, he added.
