Wonder why your water bills are high?

There is no rationale behind charging as there are no water meters for individual households

The docket average system of billing by the Water Board irks many households. There are 5 lakh pipeline connections in the city that do not have meters to record the water usage. The water board officials measure the water outflow from the main pipeline and divide it among the number of connections it serves. Due to this a two-room household with five people and a two-storey villa with more number of people are getting the same bill irrespective of water usage

Aditya Parankusam

Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS & SB) has 8 lakh water connections in the city, out of them only 3 lakh connections have water meters of which one lakh meters are not working. There are 5 lakh water connections in the city that do not have any water meters, yet monthly bills are generated and people pay, wondering why so huge bills. According to HMWS & SB terminology, 1500- 2500 pipeline connections are given to a main pipeline which is called a docket. According to records, there are 543 dockets in the city. The authorities measure the water usage on the main pipeline and divide the bill uniformly among all the individual connections. As per this system a two-room household and two-floor villa will get the same bill irrespective of water usage if fits in the same docket.

As per the tariffs, if the water usage is less than 15,000 litres a month, the household has to pay a bill of `225. On the contrary, there are instances where a MIG/LIG household received a pounding bill of `500-1000 or even `2000. Apart from the faulty bills as per the docket average standards, hefty bills are also levied from individual households stating that the house doors were either locked or the installed meter was faulty when the in-charge came to give out the e-bills.

Recently the Water Board authorities have set up water meters to 1318 bulk lines (with capacity less than 25mm) and claimed that they could scientifically bill the usage.

“We are a three-room household, our usage hardly crosses 15000 litres per month, and we should be paying only `225. But with the docket average system we are ending up paying around `500 and more. I just cannot understand the rationale behind the docket average system,” says Chakri Gurunath an employee at civil court.

Water Meters new spot of bother

Water Board has stepped up the ante, with more than just shocking bills. Barring the locally made water meters which are available for `500 and citing European standards, the Water Board authorities have made it mandatory to purchase water meters made by five select companies, which cost around `1,300 – 2,000. This directive by the Water Board is putting a dent into those with meagre incomes.

According to section 4 (1) and (2) of Water Cess Act of 1977; for the purpose of measuring and recording the quantity of water consumed, every person carrying on any specified industry and every local authority shall affix meters of such standards and at such places as may be prescribed and it shall be presumed that the quantity indicated by the meter has been consumed by such person or local authority, as the case may be, until the contrary is proved. But the water board officials chose to ignore this rule and have made a mandate that domestic household should purchase the water meters, that too specified by the water board, which costs `1000 –1500 more than what is available in the local market.