Get your water connections legal on payment of Rs 2,025

Lokmat News Network

Aurangabad, July 29:

The Aurangabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) administrator A K Pandey has made a big announcement regarding water connections today. He appealed to the citizens to pay

Rs 2,025 and get their illegal water connection legal or take a new connection, soon.

“We cannot grant concession more than the above amount. This is the last chance for the citizens. Later on, the AMC will undertake drive of disconnecting illegal connections in large number as per the orders of the Aurangabad Bench of Bombay High Court,” stressed the administrator.

There would be four lakh properties. Out of it, one lakh citizens may deprive of water connections in their areas and the remaining 3 lakh citizens may have water supply connections, believes the civic administration. Ironically, there are 1.35 lakh water connections (residential and commercial) on AMC record. Hence as an initiative to bring these illegal connections on record, the civic administration decided to legalise connections on payment of Rs 10,000. Later on, they realised that the citizens would not be responding to the appeal. Presently, the annual water tax (of Rs 4,050) has been reduced to 50 pc (Rs 2,025) by the AMC.

Hence the AMC will soon appeal to the citizens to pay a one-year water tax (Rs 2,025) and get the connection legalised, apart from minor charges of forms and miscellaneous works. The AMC can't reduce the charges than 50 per cent. This will be the last chance for them, said the sources.

Three days of water?

Earlier, the majority of areas in the city were getting water in taps on a gap of 7 to 9 days. Now, the AMC has succeeded in supplying water on gap of four days, to the majority areas in the city. It is being said that the citizens would have to wait for three more months to receive water in a gap of three days. The situation will change after the establishment of the Harsul water treatment plant; replacing pumps at Dhorkin, Pharola and other places.

Supplementary water proposal by AMC

The administrator Pandey said the Rs 200 crore proposal of replacing the damaged old pipeline of 700 mm width, between Jayakwadi and Nakshatrawadi, has been mooted. The state government will be allocating the fund for it and the AMC will have to implement and execute the proposal.

No comments on transfer

Pandey has been transferred during the last week and the government has transferred Sangli’s collector Abhijeet Chaudhary as the municipal commissioner of AMC. However, when inquired about the status, he avoided commenting on it.