Residents in flats burn a hole in their pockets to pay for water

The residents claim that the private water tankers are charging a heavy sum for daily water supply, resulting in the associations charging more money from the residents. “We never paid money extra money for water so far. Now, we are paying Rs 3,500 a month for water apart from maintenance charge of Rs 3,000,” said Ramya Ashok Kumar, who lives in an apartment in Adambakkam. She also added that they were dependent on groundwater initially and after they ran out of it, they have opted for private tankers, which charge exorbitant rates, as a last resort.

Apartment dwellers also claim that private tankers charge Rs 3,500 to Rs 6,000 for 12,000 litres of water. If the area is remote, they charge more money.The cost shared among the residents, they added.

N Nijalingam, president, Tamil Nadu Private Tanker Operators Association said that the lorry owners have ensure that the diesel charges are covered if the houses are located in a remote location. “We don’t charge extra amount,” he added.

Indira Priyadharshini from Keelkattalai said, “We weren’t having a problem until our borewells were functioning. We receive supply from private tankers three days once and the charge is paid along with the maintenance. We tried booking for metro water but they have stalled our requests for next 15 days.” She also added that they can save a lot of money if they book metro water tankers.

The common complaint raised by the residents is that they are unable to book metro water tankers online as they are always booked for at least a month.

When DT Next contacted Metro water about this issue, they claimed that they are unaware of such problems.