CHENNAI: In a few months, city residents will pay their water bill based on the number of litres they consume, if the Metro Water Board’s plan goes as per its script. The board has started installing digital meters in commercial and semi-commercial water connections in parts of the city. After January 2020, the meters will be installed for household connections too. Once the process is complete, the water bill for households will be calculated based on the meter readings. Currently, city residents pay a fixed tariff irrespective of the quantum of water they consume.
The main objective is conservation of water as metered billing would make the users more prudent. This would be the first time Chennai residents pay for water based on quantum of consumption. Earlier attempts for metered billing failed for many reasons, including public opposition and faulty meters. Metrowater officials said the new digital meters are accurate and the earlier problems will not recur. The board is bearing the cost of the digital meters and users will not be charged. The officials said the water charges and slab rates would the same as what was revised in 2018.
Though the rates were fixed by the board and even revised occasionally, they were so far implemented only for commercial establishments since water meters have not been installed for most domestic connections. For domestic connections, Rs 4 will be charged for every kilolitre (KL), up to a monthly consumption of 10 KL. For a consumption between 11 to 15 KL, Rs 16 will be charged for every KL. Between 15 to 24 KL, the rate is Rs 24 per KL and for 25 KL and above, it is Rs 40.
The whole concept of water metering has been much debated with residents and activists taking opposing stances. Some argued that metering would be pointless as the board does not supply water around the clock to houses even within the Chennai Corporation limits. However, keeping in mind that water is a finite resource, others argue that consumption will come down only if people are aware of how much they use and pay accordingly. For their part, officials said that water charges will not be levied when there is no supply.
“The existing meters (earlier installed in a few areas) sometimes show wrong readings and are prone to errors. The new digital ones are manufactured by a French company and have been tested at the Fluid Control Research Institute at Kerala before coming here. Also, as and when new areas come under the water supply network, meters will be provided to them,” a Metrowater board official said.
As the first step towards this initiative, funded by Smart City Mission, 600-odd digital water meters are being installed in commercial and water-intensive establishments in Adyar, Velachery, Thiruvanmiyur, and Besant Nagar, which fall come under Zone 13. In the next six months, a total of 12,708 digital meters will be installed in commercial, semi-commercial and other water intensive establishments that consume more than five lakh litres of water per month. Also, old manual meters will be replaced with the new ones and buildings that never had meters will be fitted with the digital meters.
Phase 1 to end January 2020
First, water-intensive bulk consumers like malls, and hotels will be fitted with digital meters. This is expected to be completed by January 2020. In the second phase, the meters will be installed in all domestic households.