Mumbai: No Water Tax Hike This Year as CM Shinde Orders Cancellation of Civic Proposal – News18

In a massive relief for Mumbai residents, a proposal for water tax revision has been cancelled by the civic body on the directives of Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde. “As per the instructions given by the chief minister to civic chief IS Chahal to cancel the proposal for water tax revision submitted by the hydraulic engineering department, the civic body is making it clear that there will be no increase in water tax this year,” read a statement issued by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation on Wednesday.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said Mumbai receives 3,950 MLD water daily from seven reservoirs located in Thane and Nashik districts. The water is brought to the city in 150-km pipelines and distributed to households after the purification process.

“The annual water tariff is determined by calculating all the infrastructure costs, maintenance and repairs, royalty charges, water purification and disinfection process, electricity costs, and establishment costs etc,” it said.

The standing committee of BMC in 2012-13 approved a proposal to increase water tax by a maximum of 8 percent and the municipal administration had been given powers in this regard. As per the policy, the department had proposed a hike in the water tax.

The BMC, governed by the Shiv Sena (undivided) for more than two decades, has had an administrator since March 2022 when the five-year term of the elected representatives ended and the state legislature deferred the upcoming elections to the civic and local bodies.

Shinde, who took oath as the chief minister last June after splitting the Uddhav Thackeray-led party, is trying to gain a toehold in civic wards in Mumbai, the home ground of the original Sena founded by late Bal Thackeray.

(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI)