Thiruvananthapuram: The cash-strapped Kerala Water Authority will bill its consumers 5% more from April 1. The hike in water tariff will be applicable to all categories of consumers, including domestic, non-domestic and industries.
The current tariff of Rs 4.20 for 1,000 litres of water for domestic consumers will increase to Rs 4.31 from the next financial year.
The water tariff will increase on every April 1 till 2024 to meet the eligibility criteria for an additional borrowing of 2% of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP).
The Union Finance Ministry had set the criteria in the wake of the financial crisis brought about by the COVID-19 outbreak.
While KWA spends Rs 23.89 for production of one kilo litre of water, it gets only Rs 10.48 from the consumer. If one splits the Rs 23.89 required for production of one kilo litre of water, Rs 14.38 goes for salary, pension and related expenses, Rs 5.41 for power, Rs 1.36 for maintenance, Rs 0.22 for purchase of chemicals, Rs 2.26 due to wear and tear and 0.26 for other office expenses.
This huge gap could be bridged either by increasing the water tariff or by commissioning more income-generating projects. Water tariff was last revised in 2014.
Though the minimum price of one kilo litre water is Rs 4, attempts to revise tariffs have always faced opposition from political parties for fear of public backlash.
KWA's major source for all its expenses is the non-plan grant allotted by the state government. In the past one decade, the state government provided Rs 2,649.98 crore as non-plan grant alone. In the meantime, the KWA also lost Rs 202.12 crore, the last instalment of the central government share for the Jal Jeevan Mission because of the delay in submitting the bills.
The KWA has 29 divisions across the state.
