Water gets costlier: Goa hikes tariff by 5%, will raise it again every April

Times of India | 7 hours ago | 03-10-2022 | 06:12 am

PANAJI: The public works department (PWD) has issued an order hiking the water tariff for all consumers by 5% with effect from October 1. The order, by principal chief engineer Uttam Parsekar, also states that the tariff will be hiked by 5% every year now, at the beginning of the financial year. This will essentially mean that consumers will face another hike in six months, in April 2023. “Water supply tariff to all categories of consumers are to be billed as per notification dated May 12, 2020, and notification dated August 30, 2021. As per the notification dated May 12, 2020, the water supply tariff was to be increased by 5% at the beginning of each financial year and the same was not implemented till date,” the PWD order states. “Now, therefore, it is decided that the water supply tariff be increased by 5% with effect from October 1, 2022, and thereafter at the beginning of each financial year,” stated the PWD order. In May 2020, the minimum rate for water consumption was hiked to Rs 3.5 per cubic meter. A rate of between Rs 3.5 and Rs 15 per cubic meter was made applicable for utilising more than 16,000 litres of water per month. For families that limit their monthly usage to 16,000 litres only, there will be no charge as per the scheme ‘save water for free water’ implemented last year by chief minister Pramod Sawant. PWD officials, however, defended the latest increase in water tariff, stating that the hike, when calculated, will amount to a minimal sum. “The water tariff when calculated will only amount to an increase by 26 paise per cubic meter,” said the official. Officials said that most rural consumers already benefit from the scheme for free water, due to their low usage. In Goa, the water consumption for rural households is estimated to be 70 litres per person per day. For a family of four, this works out to around 8,500 litres or 8.5 cubic metres per month for a rural household of four, and for those consuming less than 16,000 litres a month, the bill is waived off.