WASA bleeds in meter muddle

The Dhaka WASA suffers a systems loss of 46 per cent, as over 60,000 subscribers in the city do not have water meters, and thousands of installed meters are out of order.

The WASA is suffering the huge annual loss amounting to crores of taka, as it is unable to provide water meters to its customers.

Against an estimated current demand of 190 crore litres of water, the Dhaka WASA supplies about 152 crore litres of water every day in the capital. Pilferage accounts for 38 crore litres of water, and another 32 crore litres is wasted owing to leakage at several points in the pipeline network, said the sources.

Out of a total of 200,000 subscribers, the WASA is billing 60,000 subscribers against their holding tax or an amount fixed by the WASA, as these subscribers do not have meters. Though these subscribers have to pay only 30.45 per cent of their annual holding tax for water, they can use an unlimited quantity of water. On the other hand, for the thousands of subscribers whose meters are out of order for years, the WASA has fixed an average bill -- against unlimited use of water.

The situation has encouraged widespread corruption in the whole water supply system of the city. Subscribers using an unlimited quantity of water for a fixed price have developed a nexus with a section of unscrupulous WASA inspectors, and they are even selling water.

Officials said that the WASA has been giving new water connections since last year without installing the meter. WASA imports between 100 and 200 meters from time to time, but the number is inadequate.

WASA Officials said the revenue earning from water supply was well below the expected level.

A resident of the city's Mirpur area, seeking anonymity, said that he was happy that the water meter has been out of order for about 18 months. He is paying a fixed bill of Tk 170, which is the average amount of what he had paid for the last 12 years.

He said that he had set up a dyeing factory about six months ago. His water consumption has been increasing but he has been paying the same amount -- the fixed bill, after reaching a 'deal' with a meter reader.

Another resident of the same area said that the WASA has fixed a monthly bill of Tk 300 as water bill for his six-member family, as the WASA couldn't provide a meter when he got the water connection seven months ago.

He said that at least 10 families from the nearby slums took water from his house and each of the consumers paid him Tk 50 per month.

When contacted, Managing Director of the Dhaka WASA Dr Khandaker Azharul Huq said that water is a basic need and that's why the WASA was giving permissions for new connections, despite their failure to provide meters.

When asked if the meter shortage would soon be over, he said, "It is not a serious problem. We are in the process of connecting meters to the pipelines in phases."