THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The city corporation would soon bring in a bylaw streamlining distribution of water above 500 litres. The corporation expects to address the issue of drinking water misuse and higher charges levied on the consumers with this.
The by-law proposes to identify collection points for water for non-drinking purposes like agriculture, industry or trade, across the corporation limit and register them with the civic body. The corporation would also install CCTV cameras at the collection points to detect pilferage. Necessary technological support will also be provided. According to corporation health department, which is in-charge of water collection and distribution, the civic body is also developing a software to streamline water purchases. “The payment will have to be made online and never directly to the distributors, this will ensure that no extra charge is deducted from the customer. All sort of disparities in this field will be managed through the online payment method,” said a health department official.
“We will also set up a 24-hour call centre to aid the consumers. The water distribution centres will also be open 24-hours of the day. We have also fixed the price for per litre of water,” he added.
The tankers which are to be part of the water distribution network will also have to be registered with the city corporation. For vehicles to apply for licence, the city corporation has set up a fixed guideline. Depending on the capacity of the water tanker, the licence fee and the primary deposit amount will vary. The by-law will be brought before the council for approval on December 24.
At present, the septage collection of the city corporation is done through an application which allows surveillance of the vehicles collecting the waste. The same methodology will be employed here. Digital passes availed through the software will be necessary to collect as well as distribute the water.