Water minister, Delhi Jal Board at odds over OTS scheme for defaulters
Earlier this year, Delhi Chief Minister CM Arvind Kejriwal announced the scheme, stating it would benefit around 12 lakh consumers of which seven lakh were expected not to have any dues at all.
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At the meeting, the Water Minister blamed DJB officials and staff saying that the consumer redressal mechanism at the DJB Zonal Revenue Offices (ZROS) was very cumbersome. (Express File Photo)The Delhi Jal Board’s late payment amnesty scheme — a one-time settlement (OTS) scheme for households that have pending water bills — has become a bone of contention between its minister and its own finance wing.
The DJB’s finance wing, citing further “financial implications”, is of the view that the scheme should not be extended to consumers who haven’t paid their bills in the last 11 years.
Water Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj has rejected the argument. “It (OTS scheme) is a way to reduce grievances of wrong billing/higher billing…therefore, it is not appropriate to say that this would lead to huge financial implications,” he said.
Earlier this year, Delhi Chief Minister CM Arvind Kejriwal announced the scheme, stating it would benefit around 12 lakh consumers of which seven lakh were expected not to have any dues at all.
According to the minutes of the meeting held in June, the DJB CEO sought to argue that habitual defaulters on water bills for the last 11 years should not be included in the scheme as this would defeat its purpose of recasting the bills.
Furthering the CEO’s point, the finance wing stated, “…consumers who did not pay any amount in the last 11 years, even did not avail the Amnesty Scheme of DJB, are supposed to be wilful defaulter (who) do not want to pay water utility bills.”
As per the minutes, revenue collected from the waiver scheme had been dipping since January. “Such schemes lead to moral hazard and consumers tend to get habituated to not paying and waiting for similar amnesty scheme. Currently, the scheme is for domestic consumers and it may lead to demands from commercial consumers as well,” read the minutes.
At the meeting, the Water Minister blamed DJB officials and staff saying that the consumer redressal mechanism at the DJB Zonal Revenue Offices (ZROS) was very cumbersome.
Stating that he had witnessed discrepancies in bills himself, Bharadwaj, according to the minutes of the meeting, said neither the government nor DJB should “penalise the consumers for the wrongdoings of the staff of the Revenue Department, DJB.” The minister also said that the OTS is not a waiver scheme and does not seek to write off Rs 123 crore in principal amount.
The OTS scheme, meanwhile, is yet to be implemented. When asked about its status, Bharadwaj said, “No regular CEO has been appointed in last four months; so many things are held up.”
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