Wednesday, Jan 19, 2005
Wednesday, Jan 19, 2005 |
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Bangalore
By Divya Sreedharan
BANGALORE, JAN. 18. Would any company write off Rs. 160 crores dues and allow its debtors to get away by paying just Rs. 15 crores? Apparently, a Government-owned company such as the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) is supposed to do that and still operate on a "no profit, no loss," basis. The Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) has to pay it Rs. 160.75 crores for water the board supplies through public taps in the city. The civic body has not paid that sum for years, claim officials. Now, a compromise is being brokered which will see the BMP pay Rs. 15 crores and get the balance waived. "They paid Rs. 3 crores in 2004. We may realise Rs. 12 crores this year," officials say. The board has not got any official communication on the waiver from the Government though. There are 16,000 public taps in the city but the board does not supply water to all of them as it doesn't get any revenue from this service. The taps are mainly meant for slum dwellers. Now, the board wants the latter to go for subsidised individual connections so that it can slowly shut down the taps. Besides, most taps are misused, the officials point out. There are other defaulters as well. The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) owes the board Rs. 8.59 crores. "This amount has accumulated over time and is for water supplied to areas that were under BDA and later handed over to the BMP," officials explain.
Outstanding amount
The board is to get Rs. 201 crores in all. This includes money owed by some defence establishments as well. The water board gets no subsidy from the Government, unlike, say Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (BESCOM). Instead its mandate is to "find its resources through water revenues only." So, if it gets no revenue from the water it supplies, the board will find it tough to repay its own debts. For example, it owes BESCOM Rs. 147 crores for power used to pump water. "This too is a long-pending sum but we have no current dues. Our monthly power bill comes to nearly Rs. 20 crores," the officials say. Of the Rs. 147 crores, Rs. 60 crores is the interest component. "BESCOM has frozen the entire sum and we are negotiating," officials maintain. Power bills, the board's biggest expense, eat up 59 per cent of its revenues. The board needs money also to pay its loans. From January 2006, it has to pay Rs. 48 crores every month to the Japan Bank for International Cooperation — for the over Rs. 800 crores the bank lent it for the Cauvery Stage IV, Phase One project (estimated cost Rs. 1,072 crores).
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