BENGALURU: The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) has hiked the one-time deposit payment for new water and sanitary connections. Also coming into force is the compulsory penalty to be levied in case of non-installation of Rain Water Harvesting (RWH) structures in all buildings and Sewage Treatment Plants in apartments of 20 flats.
The Board had received 342 objections to its proposals following the preliminary notification in the gazette on January 12.
“They have all been attended to and we have issued the final gazette notification on February 26. All these proposals will come into force from that date,” BWSSB Chairperson T M Vijaya Bhaskar told Express.
The proposals were meant to be implemented from February 15 but the overwhelming objections from the public delayed it. According to a top BWSSB source, “We have replied to each of the objections and spelt out our reasons for enforcing the changes.” The pro-rata charges (initial deposit payment for water and sanitary connections) has been increased by 67 percent for two-storeyed individual houses and by 100 per cent for multi-storeyed apartments and commercial establishments. Houses with ground plus one floor are exempted.
“The increase has been effected after 2008 and is in keeping with the inflation and overall cost rise,” said a top official.
New Rates
The new rates (from February 26) are as follows: Rs 250 per square metre for individual houses (earlier Rs 150 per sq m), Rs 400 for multi-storeyed apartments (earlier Rs 200 per sqm) and Rs 600 for commercial establishments (Rs 300 per sqm).
Penalty for not installing RWH structures would be 25 per cent of the water bill for the first three months and 50 per cent after that. For commercial establishments, the penalty would be 50 per cent of the water bill in the first three months and 100 per cent after that period.
