Water – easy come, easy go

Do you know how much water costs us? A mere six cents per litre, according to Water Board officials.National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) Deputy General Manager Laxman Attanayake says a ton of water equivalent to one cubic metre of water costs only six rupees to the consumer and reiterated the importance of conserving water.

This contrasted with the price of a one litre bottle of water sold in the market at around Rs 45. "No shopkeeper will you give you a bottle of water on credit, but here when people don't pay their bills for a few months and we disconnect the supply they grumble," he told reporters at a recent media discussion in Kandy on water issues.

"It is delivered to your house. Ask yourself what other essential item is delivered to your doorstep for such a low price?" Attanayake asked.

The average volume of water a normal family consumes is around 20 cubic metres or 20 tons, he said, and added that the payment scales have been designed with this in mind and anyone who wastes water will have to pay more as the prices increase when more water is consumed.