Totting up water taps

KOCHI: A joint inspection will be conducted soon by the officials of the Corporation and the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) to asses the  total number of public water taps in the city. The decision was taken after the civic body and the KWA decided to settle the dispute over non-payment of water fare to the tune of Rs 91 crore for Rs 29 crore. The inspection will be completed before the commencement of monsoon season.The decision to settle the dispute over arrears for Rs 29 crore was taken at a meeting held at the capital city last week. The meeting was convened after the KWA officials informed the Corporation authorities that the latter owe them `91 crore as arrears,  which mainly consists of water bills for public taps. According to statistics, there are over 6,500 public water taps in the city. “But according to a recent survey conducted by the Corporation, the total number of public water taps in the city is only 4,106. A total of 318 taps are totally defunct,” said a top official with the Corporation.He said that considering the gravity of the situation, the Minister concerned had instructed the KWA to consider a rework on the arrears. Both the parties have also reached on a consensus to settle the issue for `29 crore.  “However, KWA officials say that as it is the Corporation that conducted the survey, a joint inspection is necessary to assess the number of taps. The date for the joint inspection  will be finalised later,” the official said.The Corporation, reeling under financial crunch, is hit further by the decision to pay the arrears. “The civic body is already spending nearly `3 crore annually for the distribution of water through tanker lorries. Adding to it is the annual amount of `3 crore that we have to pay for the KWA as charges for the public water taps,” the official added.Another major problem is the huge difference in the demand and supply. The demand of the Corporation is 430 million litre (mld) per day. But the supply from the Aluva pumphouse, which is the major source of water to the city, is only 225 mld. The distribution system is another issue,  including old and damaged pipes.The official said that though the Water Resources Minister had promised them `11 crore for replacing the old pipelines in the city, the fund is yet to be released.