Water bill waiver scheme yielded Rs 8.45 crore: Delhi govt

New Delhi: Delhi government's water bill waiver scheme has yielded Rs 8.45 crore revenue as payments of pending water charge in the first three weeks of its launch.

"We are very glad that citizens of Delhi have adopted this bill waiver scheme with open arms. For years, people of Delhi have been troubled by bill arrears due to different reasons," Delhi Water Minister Kapil Mishra said.

"The scheme which started from February 15, has in the first three weeks benefited 1.25 lakh consumers and an amount of Rs 128 crores has been disbursed as rebate," said a senior government official.

Around 97 per cent beneficiaries of the scheme live in E,F, G and H category colonies including slums, unauthorised and resettlement colonies, the official said.

Under the scheme, late payment surcharge is fully waived on domestic connections. Consumers living in E, F, G and H category colonies are fully exempted from paying pending bills while those in C and D colonies will get 50 and 75 rebate on pending bill amounts.

Residents of A and B category colonies will get 25 per cent rebate.

Domestic consumers having functional meters can avail the benefit of the scheme till July 31 while those without proper meter may also benefit from it by installing Delhi Jal Board (DJB) approved meters.