The Hindu         28.12.2011

‘Rainwater harvesting certificates’ for sale

Afshan Yasmeen

Even as the December 31 deadline to install rainwater
harvesting units on the premises of buildings on 60 ft x 40 ft sites is
nearing, people are resorting to last-minute attempts to avoid
disconnection of water and sanitary lines.

Taking
advantage of this, some plumbers and technicians authorised by the
Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) to install the units
or provide assistance to people are now going around selling ‘rainwater
harvesting certificates’ for a fee ranging between Rs. 2,000 and Rs.
5,000.

Sources in the BWSSB told
The Hindu
on Tuesday that the plumbers and technicians were convincing people that
they had been authorised to certify the installation of rainwater
harvesting units in buildings.

“They are making
people believe that they can avoid disconnection by submitting the
certificates to the BWSSB. Such instances are being reported from Old
Bangalore areas such as Malleswaram and Gandhinagar,” a source said.

Empowered
with a rule that will enable the BWSSB to cut off water and sanitary
connections to the houses that do not adopt rainwater harvesting by
December 31, BWSSB officials are again appealing to citizens to adopt
the system.

Of the 55,000 buildings on sites
measuring 60 ft x 40 ft that have to compulsorily install the units,
32,000 buildings have adopted the system so far. Of these, only around
200 are government buildings. Existing houses on 30 ft x 40 ft sites are
exempted.

Confirming the “sale of certificates,”
BWSSB Engineer-in-Chief T. Venkataraju said the board had received some
complaints in this regard.

Caution

Cautioning
people not to fall prey to such illegal measures, Mr. Venkataraju
clarified that the board would not go by such certificates.

“We
do not need any certificate. It is enough if the person installs the
unit and informs us with his water meter’s RR number. We will certify
the installation only after our engineers visit the spot and inspect
whether the units have been installed as per the specifications,” he
added.