Context:
From now onwards, groundwater extraction by industries and other establishments will be metered and charged, and anyone with an existing borewell or anyone digging afresh will have to take permission from Punjab Water Regulation and Development Authority (PWRDA).
Relevance:
GS II: Government Policies and Interventions
Dimensions of the Article:
- What are the latest directions about extraction of underground water?
- Who all would be exempted from paying the bill?
- How would the permission be sought?
- How will the authority bill the users?
- Who would install the meters?
What are the latest directions about extraction of underground water?
- Groundwater extraction by any method or technology is subject to charges by the authority.
- This includes extraction through open wells, dug wells, bore wells, dug-cum-bore wells, tube wells, step wells, filter points, collector wells, artesian wells, springs, infiltration galleries, etc.
- The charges also apply to any machinery, equipment, and instruments used for groundwater extraction.
- The charges are applicable to any combination or variation of structures used for extraction.
Who all would be exempted from paying the bill?
- Farmers using water for agriculture purposes are exempt from the charges.
- Places of worship are exempt from the charges.
- Drinking and domestic water supply schemes of the government are exempt from the charges.
- Establishments of the military or central paramilitary forces are exempt from the charges.
- Urban local bodies, panchayat raj institutions, cantonment boards, improvement trusts, and area development authorities are exempt from the charges.
- Units extracting not more than 300 cubic meters of groundwater per month are exempt from the charges.
Is there any bar on water tankers?
No motor vehicle shall be used for conveyance or transportation of groundwater through a water tanker (whether installed on the vehicle or towed as a trailer etc.) with a carrying capacity in excess of 500 litres for any purpose other than drinking and domestic or agricultural usage without Permission of the Authority.
How would the permission be sought?
- The permission would be required to be taken within six months of notification of the directions.
- Existing units seeking permission for extraction of a volume groundwater (other than brackish/saline water) more than 15,000 cubic metres per month shall submit a chemical analysis report of water of each extraction structure provided by a NABL-accredited laboratory.
- This report should not be older than six months on the date of application.
- New units granted permission to extract more than 15,000 cubic metres per month of groundwater shall provide this report within 6 months of grant of permission.
How will the authority bill the users?
- Groundwater extraction charges shall be paid by the user on a self-assessment basis in accordance with the self-recorded and reported water meter readings.
- In addition, the authority may verify the water meter readings either periodically or at any time.
- Groundwater extraction charges shall be paid on a monthly basis.
- A user shall convey the water meter readings of the last working day of the month to the authority by the 10th day of the ensuing month and shall make payment of the charges by 20th of every month.
Who would install the meters?
- A user requiring permission for groundwater extraction under the directions shall install volumetric water meters on each extraction structure.
- All water meters shall conform to the technical specifications, performance parameters and connectivity standards as required by the authority.
- It shall be the responsibility of the user to ensure that each water meter including the telemetry device (if required) is fully functional and in proper working order at all times.
-Source: Indian Express
