Water Supply Board clarifies position on sewerage service charge - Right of reply

General Manager of the National Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) K.L.L. Premanath referring to The Sunday Times lead story last week has sent the following response: The National Water Supply & Drainage Board is seriously concerned over the reports published by the press recently on the sewerage charge approved by the Hon. Minister of Water Supply and Drainage on 28th September, 2007 to implement the sewerage systems operated and maintained by the NWSDB.

The nature of the news item appeared in the national news papers in Sinhala and English languages, indicated that the news has focused the readers attention in a negative manner tempting them to react against and wildly on it. The news has at a glace expressed that NWSDB is going to tax the people for using toilets. This has completely misled the people hiding the truth and the reality.

NWSDB, the sole organization in the country which engages in providing safe water and sewerage systems to the people does not receive any funds from the government for operation and maintenance. Among other utility services water tariffs are still lowest in Sri Lanka, and it reaches the consumers at a highly subsidised rate. Even though the water tariff imposed does not reflect the cost incurred to produce it and any replacement cost that has to be included under the theory of tariff preparation, NWSDB charges a very nominal amount from the consumers for this scarce resource which has no alternative, processed through an expensive and sophisticated treatment.

The proposed sewerage service charge is applicable only to pipe borne sewerage systems operated and maintained by the NWSDB and it does not cover the toilets of any premises as it has sarcastically indicated in all the news items. NWSDB is presently maintaining only 21,608 sewerage service connections as indicated below representing mainly the housing schemes. Several other categories amounting to 10,047 are also maintained by the NWSDB. The details are as follows:

The sewerage service charge will be imposed as applicable to the above service connections. Presently these services are provided absolutely free of charge, however NWSDB incurs heavy costs in maintaining these systems. Therefore it has been decided to introduce a bear minimum service charge to recover the small fraction of operation and maintenance cost of these system. It is believed that users will decide twice before they meaninglessly flush their toilets several times wasting treated water. The proposed tariff structure is imbedded into the water bill and applicable only to the customers who use sewerage system operated by the NWSDB. This does not cover even the 0.5% of the entire population. If a house hold consumes 1-10 units (A unit is equal to 01 Cubic metre), a rupee per unit is charged for 01-10 units. This will be incrementally increased in a very simplified manner adding up to a least cost as a sewerage service charge to water bills.

The applicable sewerage service charge is as follows: This indicates if one consumes 18 units of water further Rs.27/- will be added to the water bill reflecting the sewerage service charge. Usually general consumption of a household is ranged between 15-20 units. NWSDB believes that this would be a controlling measure promoting water conservation at a bear minimum cost to the consumers.

Reporters NOTE:

Mr. Premanath does not deny that the tax would cover the water consumed for toilets connected to the NWSDB sewerage system as mentioned in our news item in The Sunday Times last week. It is clear that those connected to the NWSDB sewerage system will be paying merely because their toilets and waste water is linked to the swerage system. The letter does not deny this.

Despite Mr. Premanath’s denial in his letter says “It is believed that users will decide twice before they meaninglessly flush their toilets several times wasting treated water”, which further confirms our news item.