HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board's move to levy sewerage maintenance charges of Rs. 125 on apartment dwellers has raised the hackles of flat owners, who say the levy is unreasonable.

Hitherto the board used to collect 35 per cent of the monthly domestic water bill of the entire apartment as sewerage cess. While a domestic connection caters to an individual household (Rs. 120 for the water bill), the same was being used for the entire apartment. On an average there were at least 10 flats in each of them and the charges came to barely Rs. 10 or even less for flat owners, putting a heavy load on the sewage network of the board.

Even as officials of the revenue-starved water board say the cess makes perfect sense, flat owners have been demanding that those who contribute to the pressure on the sewage lines should contribute proportionately instead of making only flats as targets.

Low revenue

Officials point out that apartments have been paying the same amount as an individual household whereas the load on the sewerage network was heavy and revenue far below what was due. "But, why single out apartment dwellers? Even those living in single-storied houses with more number of portions contribute to the flow. The levy must be based on the number of people concentrated in a dwelling than a generalised assumption that outflow of sewage from flats is more," says secretary, Property Tax Payers Association, C.S. Murthy. "And what about establishments like railway and bus stations, office complexes like Secretariat and AG's Office, university hostels, function halls, schools and corporate hospitals. How are they be being treated in the new system?" asks the association president N. Laxmaiah.

There are about 6,950 apartment complexes on the HMWSSB system with about 1.5 lakh flats in them, all contributing about Rs. 70 lakhs towards sewerage cess earlier. But the new levy has ensured a sizeable increase in the revenue flow to the water board, officials say.

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