BENGALURU: Water tariff across the state may go up by Rs 2-3 if the government accepts a proposal by the forest and environment department to levy a green cess on water bills to protect catchment areas in the Western Ghats.
Forest, Environment and Ecology Minister Eshwar B Khandre on Wednesday asked his department officials to submit a proposal on the green cess within seven days, which he will forward to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah for consideration.
In a letter to his officials, Khandre said the Western Ghats is the lifeline of the ecosystem and the state. It helps regulate monsoon and is the source of rivers like Tunga, Bhadra, Cauvery, Kabini, Hemavathi, Krishna, Malaprabha, Ghataprabha and others.
“Water from these rivers is supplied to many cities and towns. These rivers are required to be protected as they will have to meet the water demands of the people in future also. These rivers can flow and be secured only if the Western Ghats is well protected.
A green cess of a few rupees levied on consumers in towns and cities where the water is supplied will be used for forest development and protection and enhancement of green cover. The forest department will also be able to purchase lands which farmers are keen to sell to mitigate conflict and increase the span of rail barricades across forest boundaries to reduce man-elephant conflict. The forest and environment department is directed to submit a proposal within seven days,” the letter read.
The minister said, “With the cess, a corpus will be created and the amount cannot be used for any other purpose.” Sources in the minister’s office said the subject is going to be discussed in the next cabinet meeting.
Department officials told TNIE that they held discussions with the minister expressing their concern over diminishing water sources, drying up of rivers and reducing nutrient content in the water bodies. “People always pay for the treatment and transportation of water. No one thinks of the source of water. This cess will help increase awareness among people and realise the importance of water. Forest areas need to be protected. The cess amount will help this,” said an official.