Taxing Times: After Proposal To Hike Property Tax, Bengaluru Residents May Pay 35 Per Cent Higher Water Tariff

Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) has been reportedly planning a hike in the water tariff in the city soon.

This will be a steep increase as the body plans a hike of about 30-35 per cent of the current rates. A proposal will soon be sent to the state government for approval by BWSSB.

Deccan Herald quoted BWSSB Chairman Tushar Girinath as saying, “We are planning to send the proposal to the state government by the end of January. We are still finalising the hike percentage.”

Another senior official of BWSSB said, “We have been paying for the re-laying of roads, and a lot of money is being spent to get water connection to the 110 villages. It is necessary to boost our funds,” Deccan Herald reported.

BWSSB generates about Rs 1,200 crore from water bills each year. In 2005, a tariff hike had been made and again in 2015. This had a gap of nine years. This time, it will be well within four years.