In order to check illegal tap connections and bring them back to the tax-fold, the Municipal Corporation of Karimnagar (MCK) had made it mandatory for property tax payers (households) to compulsorily disclose the details of tap-connection number and Aadhaar card number.
Now, the people of Karimnagar, who pay the annual property tax, should disclose the tap-connection passbook number and Aadhaar card number or else the municipal authorities would not accept the tax and on the other hand, the delay in the payment of tax would result in a fine for the household.
Following the complaints about several leakages in the tap connections and pilferage of tap water, MCK authorities have launched reforms to streamline the tap connections and bring all the tap-connection holders into the tax-net.
The MCK had announced tap connections at a cost of Rs. 200 per household to the people below poverty line (BPL). Later, it was reduced to Re 1 per tap connection to BPL families. Incidentally, there was overwhelming response to the Re 1 tap connection with over 2,000 families coming forward for tap connections.
In order to bring people living above poverty line into the water tax fold, the municipal authorities have made it mandatory for property tax-payers to disclose their tap connection number and Aadhaar card. Following the strict instructions, more than 4,000 families have come forward for the regularisation of their tap connections.
Talking to The Hindu , Mayor S. Ravinder Singh said that there was good response to the special drive and added they had taken up this drive as part of reforms to ensure cent per cent legal tap connections and check pilferage of water. More than 4,000 people had come forward for regularisation of their illegal tap connections in order to pay the property tax, he said and added that these people would now regularly pay water tax of Rs. 100 per month for each connection.
Stating that the MCK was supplying water to adjoining villages such as Bommakal, Rekurthi, Padmanagar, Theegalaguttapalli, Alugunu and other gram panchayats, he said that they were not paying water tax to the MCK. He said that they had written to the government and very soon, the grama panchayats would also pay water tax to the MCK.
