20,000 litres free water scheme lacks clarity in Hyderabad: Congress

Hyderabad: Former Minister & ex-Leader of Opposition in Telangana State Legislative Council Mohammed Ali Shabbir said that the 20,000 litres free water scheme launched by the Telangana Government in Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) lacks clarity and aimed at misleading the people.

Shabbir Alisaid that the 20,000 litres free water scheme was being implemented with many riders and it would create more confusion than giving relief to the consumers. "When all consumers are already metered water connections, why are they being asked to instal a new meter?" he asked. The Congress leader said that the supply of drinking water in slum areas of Hyderabad through public or community taps was already free since the beginning. Therefore, the domestic slum consumers have nothing to gain or lose from the new scheme. However, it would be a burden for the individual domestic consumers to spend for installation of new meters. "Why are the domestic consumers being forced to replace the existing and functional meters with the new ones?" he asked.

The Congress leader said that there was absolutely no clarity on implementation of the scheme for consumers living in apartment buildings. He said it was ridiculous to ask flat owners to install individual meters or go for individual registration as they get water supply through one connection and they split the bill amount among themselves.

He also objected to the condition of linking Aadhaar numbers to the Customer Account Numbers (CANs). He said this might lead to intrusion in privacy of consumers. He pointed out that the High Court has recently objected to linking Aadhaar Card to registration of property.