When city residents pay more for less water

Forced to pay more, residents have been demanding Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (Metrowater) to increase the number of 6,000-litre tanker lorries. “Residents can book tanker water through Metro water website only from 6 am to 6 pm and they can opt for the supply of 6,000 or 9,000 litres. However, the website allows only 50 bookings for 6,000-litre tankers,” VS Jayaraman, T Nagar welfare association said.

He added that within minutes of the online window opening, the limit of 50 tankers exceeds and customers are forced to book the 9,000-litre tanker.

“The residents book as per sump capacity. Those accepting 9,000 litres instead of 6,000 are not only burning a hole in their pockets but also losing a major quantity of water. Metro water should increase the number of 6,000-litre tankers or supply 6,000 litres in 9,000-litre tanker lorries,” Jayaraman added. 

Metro water supplies 9,000 litres for Rs 700 (domestic) and charges Rs 1,000 for commercial purposes. Households can purchase 6,000 litres of water for Rs 475, while commercial establishments have to pay Rs 700 for the same quantity.

A Metro water official said that it is in the process of hiring more number of 6,000-litre tanker lorries owing to the increasing demands.

“We have nearly 1,000 tanker lorries to supply water to the city, which includes some 6,000-litre lorries. The government has directed us to hire at least 2,000 lorries with 6,000-litre capacity. This would ensure the supply to narrow streets and to households having smaller sumps,” the official added.

Metro water had received 52,246 bookings for tanker lorry water between February 1 and February 25 and delivered to 36,113 residents. Of the 51,813 bookings made in January, Metro water made 42,753 deliveries.