SRINAGAR: As Jammu and Kashmir administration has geared up for metering of water connections in all the cities and major towns besides other semi-urban and rural areas of J&K from April next year, the J&K Water Resources Regulatory Authority today came up with new revised rates of water tariff in terms of liters per day and half-yearly flat rates for urban and rural areas, instead of annual water charges, Daily Excelsior reported.
Quoting official sources the newspaper Daily Excelsior reported that after fully metering the electric connections in the entire J&K, the UT Administration has now decided to go for totally metering of domestic as well as commercial water connections like Delhi, Chandigarh and other major towns of the country. The process would commence from Srinagar and Jammu Cities from April 2022, followed by all the district headquarters and then other major towns in Jammu and Kashmir.
While the water tariff in J&K has witnessed a sharp hike in the rates during the last three years from nearly Rs 1600 to Rs 2770 per year, this new tariff on drinking water is likely to exert much burden on the poor, lower middle class and the middle- class people from next financial year, said the report.
“Even for the current financial year (2021-22) as well, the consumers of domestic category in J&K will be made to pay Rs 1500 as six months tariff in towns and cities, those using half-inch (1/2 inch) water pipes and Rs 2850 for those using ¾ inch water supply pipes as flat rate and the same amount for the next six months, ending March 2022. In a rural areas, the rate will be Rs 500 for consumers using ½ inch pipes and Rs 800 for pipes of ¾ inch diameter for six months,” it said.
For domestic-cum-semi -commercial category, the rates in towns and cities for ½ inch pipes will be Rs 1750 and Rs 3300 for ¾ inch pipes, it added.
According to a report in the commercial category, the Jal Shakti Deptt would charge a half-yearly tariff of Rs 5000 for ½ inch pipes, Rs 15,400 for ¾ inch pipes and Rs 46,220 for one-inch pipes and Rs 77,000 for the pipes of diameter beyond one and half inch.
For Industrial category consumers as well, a sharp hike has been witnessed. For six months of the current financial year, the flat tariff for one inch pipes will be Rs 21,600, for one and half-inch water pipes it will be Rs 58,800 while for 2 inch pipes and beyond it will be Rs 84,750. For institutional category, the flat rate of water tariff for six months will be Rs 1950 for ½ inch pipes, Rs 3700 for ¾ inch pipes while it will be Rs 5400 for one-inch pipe or beyond that.
Even for hand pumps in private premises (Govt drilled), the six months flat tariff for one inch pipe will be Rs 1500 in rural area and Rs 1850 for one inch pipe in urban areas. The Government even has declared tariff for public stand posts ranging from Rs 1600 to Rs 3100 and self drilled bore wells. For irrigation purpose also, the new rates of Tariff have been declared ranging from Rs 92 per acre to Rs 1132 per acre for different category of crops.
Giving first ever shocker to the consumers, the J&K Water Resources Regulatory Authority, while announcing new tariff for metered connections, fixed a rate of Rs 12 for consumption of 200/350 liters per day (lpd) for rural area under domestic category, while it will be Rs 20 for 350 LPD, Rs 21 for 700 LPD and Rs 23 for 700 LPD and beyond in the towns and cities.
For domestic-cum- semi- commercial category, Rs 24 will be the tariff for 350 LPD, Rs 25 for 700 LPD and Rs 26 beyond 700 LPD in towns and cities. In the commercial category, the metered tariff for 1500 LPD will be Rs 28, for 1501 to 4000 LPD Rs 39, for 4001 to 6000 LPD Rs 42 and beyond 6000 LPD the rate will be Rs 46.
For Industry, the metered rate will be Rs 27 up to 6000 LPD, Rs 28 for 6001 to 15000 LPD and beyond 15000 LPD the rate will be Rs 29. For the Institutional category, Rs 26 will be the tariff for consumption of 700 LPD, Rs 28 for 701 to 1500 LPD and beyond 1500 LPD the rate will be Rs 30.
The Water Regulatory Authority while rationalizing the categorization further clarified that all residential houses/ premises, including all Govt Health and Educational institutions, including organizations, centres/ homes which are not for private gains like orphanages, old age homes, destitute homes, charitable homes will fall in domestic category.
According to Govt order, all residential premises where commercial use co-exists in a part of premises and the water use is non-intensive such as in the case of grocer/Kiryana shops, departmental stores, stationery shops, barber shops, Tandoor bakery shop, ATM, Telephone booths, internet café, tea-stall, ice-cream parlour, small snacks shops, eatery, gift shops, tailoring shops, embroidery shops, photocopying, confectionery, fruits/ vegetables shops courier service doctors clinic used for private gains, will fall in the category of domestic-cum-semi-commercial. In case of residential premises where water consumption is intensive for business activity/ shops like , clothes washing/ dry cleaning, meat shops, sweet shops, service stations etc, commercial rates will be charged. Public stand posts will also include hand pumps installed for general public use, the order said.
All other categories of consumers, who are not covered in all domestic and domestic -cum-semi commercial categories inclusive but not restricted to commercial and non-domestic establishments, such as shops, business houses, scrap dealers, transport agencies, airports, helipads, railway stations, ropeway stations, bus terminals, hotels, restaurants, bars, petrol pumps, service stations, skiing resorts, health resorts, cyber café, eateries, sweet shops, tea-stalls, butcher shops, dry-cleaning/cloth washing shops, multiplexes, cinema halls, food giants, garages, nursing homes, diagnosis Labs, dispensaries, Labs, MRI Centres, doctors clinics transport companies, slaughter houses, showrooms, clubs, amusement parks, circus, banks, clubs, health clubs, automobile agencies, saloons, parking and multi-parking places, beauty-parlors, travel agencies, banquet halls, mega malls and supermarkets etc. will fall in the category of Commercial, newspaper Daily Excelsior quoted the Govt order as having said.
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