HC stays water tariff hike in city
The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Tuesday granted an interim stay on the proposed rise in water tariff for consumers in the Greater Hyderabad limits. A division bench, comprising acting Chief Justice P.C. Ghose and Justice Vilas Afzulpurkar, gave the verdict while dealing with a public interest litigation filed by the Forum for Good Governance challenging the Water Board’s move to enhance the water tax.
The forum represented by Padmanabha Reddy brought to the notice of the court that the Water Board had failed to collect over Rs 170 crore in arrears from various government organisations and was passing the liability on to the residents. The state government, admitting that it owed the Water Board around Rs 170 crore, contended that the Board also had an outstanding electricity bill of Rs 160 crore. Granting an interim stay, Justice Ghose directed the Water Board authorities to collect the arrears of Rs 170 crore within two months and reassess the need for the enhancement of water charge.
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