Mangaluru: An official order has been passed affecting the reduction of the cost of drinking water for household use, which was a burden on the common people under the Mangaluru City Corporation. As a result of the continuous efforts of Mangaluru South and North MLAs, the State Government has agreed to the resolution taken at the Mangaluru City Corporation meeting.
The first general body meeting of the MCC was held on August 13, 2020. On this occasion, in the very first meeting, an agenda was presented to implement many points given in the BJP manifesto. A proposal to reduce the water charges was presented and approved and sent to the State Government for approval. Due to this, many correspondences were held between the Government and the Corporation regarding the reduction of water charges, and the proposal for the reduction of water charges had remained the same. Meanwhile, in the meeting held on February 8, 2022 under the Chairmanship of the Government Secretary of the Urban Development Department, the Commissioner of the City Corporation, was instructed to review the proposal and submit a revised proposal keeping in mind the financial impact that may be caused to the Mangaluru City Corporation due to water rate revision and ensuring that there is no loss. The Commissioner brought the new notice from the Government level to the attention of the Mayor and requested him to prepare a new rate revision and present it to the council for approval.
After a detailed discussion held in the general body meeting in May 2022, the pointers of the meeting were submitted to the government. At the general body meeting of the Corporation held on May 31, 2022, a new list of rate revisions was presented and approved.
Due to continuous efforts, the requests putforth by the Corporation have now been approved by the State Government by decreasing the water tariff rate in the City.
According to the new revised rate, if 20000 litres of water is used, the previous rate was Rs. 140, instead now Rs. 100 has been fixed. Rs. 785 for consumption of 70000 litres, Rs. 1205 for consumption of upto 1 lakh litres and Rs. 1905 for water consumption up to one and a half lakh. There was also a mention in the proposal about levying rates. The Government has accepted this proposal.
Speaking to News Karnataka, MLA B. Vedavyas Kamath said that as promised to the common people, we have made an effort at the Government level to reduce the water charges for domestic use, and we took a decision in the Corporation meeting to reduce the burden on the poor people by reducing the water charges and subsequently submitted a revised proposal to the Government. An official order has come now that the Government has agreed to this proposal in a meeting of Officials of the Urban Development Department. Through this, the common man has got a solution to the big inconvenience. At present, the order has been received for one year and I will make sincere efforts to extend the same, he said and thanked the State government for taking urgent action in this regard.
