AAP govt budgets for piped water to all

NEW DELHI: The water sector is likely to see "an ambitious budget" this year. Water minister Kapil Mishra said the government had prepared an aggressive action plan to ensure piped water supply to all parts of the capital while the quality of water would be the other key issue.

In the 2015-16 budget, the government had kept Rs 1,468 crore or 7.73% of the budget allocation for the water and sewerage sectors. Officials said there could be a substantial increase in this year's budget, to be announced on Monday.

"Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has announced piped water supply to all colonies by 2017. This will be one massive task this year. The other major area will be quality drinking water. We have worked out a project-based budget and there will be extremely focused spending this year," Mishra said.

The government is currently subsidising water usage, allowing consumers up to 20 kilolitres of free water per family each month. Around Rs 270-280 crore is being spent on this annually. The more houses the government adds to its network-especially from slums or unauthorised colonies where consumption could be on the lower side which would qualify a household for free water- the subsidy amount will rise. DJB said in 2015-16, it earned an additional revenue of Rs 170 crore.

The department also announced a massive amnesty scheme, writing off pending bills across the city till November 2015. Depending on the location of the colony, the waiver ranges from 25% to 100%, leading to a write-off of roughly Rs 1,000 crore.

Other than this, the recent crisis with Haryana has brought home the fact that Delhi needs to have a storage capacity. Mishra has asked for a plan to ensure at least a 10-day supply storage capacity.

"A Rs 170-crore additional revenue does not mean much in the scheme of things where large changes are being planned. The government will have to be generous, especially as DJB is a non-profit body. It will also have to be smart about spending," . Increasing revenue is essential and it will have to keep a control over its subsidies and amnesty schemes. We also hope there will be a strong focus on reviving the Yamuna," said a water sector expert.