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Further Lapses in Kandy Water Billing
Come to Light
The ongoing investigation that The Kandy News has been conducting
of the management by the KMC of its collection of water tariffs
from consumers reveals that only about 25,000 (68%) of the total
of 37,000 water supply connections actually get billed for payment.
This is stated in a report that the Water Engineer of the Council
Mr. P B. Abeykoon has submitted to the Council. The Report also
states that the Council supplies approximately 34,000 cubic
meters of water per day. But payments are collected only for
about 21,000 cm (62%).
Mr. Abeykoon also estimates that about
30% of the 13,000cm of water that is not billed is consumed
by the 48 schools (1,000cm 8%), 100 street stand pipes and a
couple of bathing facilities in two low-income communities in
Mahaiyawa and Pathanawatta in Hantana (1,500cm 12%) and public
places such as municipal playgrounds, Kandy Central Market,
Manikkumbura Wholesale Market and KMC offices (1,250cm 10%).
The Report also states that about 2,100cm (16%) is wasted owing
to leaking pipelines. But the above account for only about 5,900cm
(46%) of unbilled water. That leaves over 7,100cm or about 21%
of the total daily supply unaccounted for. It is suspected that
the KMC fails to collect payment for this amount that is worth
about Rs 3 million per month at current rates charged by the
Council.
The Water Engineer believes that there
are several reasons for the non-collection of water revenue.
There could be a fair number of illegal connections in the city
and suburbs. The Council to date has not made a serious effort
to verify this to establish the facts. There are some consumers
still without water meters and they pay a flat monthly rate
of Rs 20. Faulty meters and faulty reading of meters as well
as some consumers bribing meter readers to under-report consumption
are other likely causes.
The Council is considering drastically
reducing the number of free stand pipes. It also hopes to fix
meters for schools and others that get free water so that the
Council has an accurate estimate of consumption. It also hopes
to conduct a comprehensive survey of all households and commercial
premises to ensure that all supplies are accurately metered.
The Kandy News also followed up on our
report (September 2006) on large-scale commercial consumers,
government institutions and some others not paying their water
bills. The issue involving the Queen's Hotel has been resolved
when it was found that it was a billing error on the part of
the KMC.
The government institutions such as the
Peradeniya Teaching Hospital and the Sinha Regiment have either
asked for an extension of time to settle the bills or promised
to pay in installments. The Diyawadana Nilame has agreed to
pay the bill for his official residence. But there is no settlement
on the water bill of over Rs 1.0m for bathing elephants in the
DN's official premises.
St. Anthony's College (Rs 4.1m) and Girls' High School (Rs 1.0m)
who have unpaid bills for using water for their respective swimming
pools have not responded to requests from the Council to meet
with officials to discuss payment. Council sources told The
Kandy News that if the two schools persist in ignoring the request
of the Council for a meeting the supply would be disconnected.
Our inquiries also reveled that the computerized
water billing system in the KMC has a default facility to identify
consumers whose bills either rise or fall sharply. But this
facility has been deliberately disconnected. It is suspected
that this has been done to protect some of the large defaulters.
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Public Cooperation Lacking to Avoid Earth
Slip Disasters Says Kandy GA
Kandy Government Agent (GA) Mr., Ghotabhaya
Jayaratne in an exclusive interview with The Kandy News said
that public cooperation was not forthcoming to avoid earth slip
disasters. He made this comment in the context of the several
earth slips that occurred recently in the Kandy District during
the unusually heavy rains. The earth slips have claimed about
ten lives and displaced about 1,000 people and caused extensive
damage to residential and commercial property.
The GA said that the government has given
a funeral grant of Rs15,000 for each death to the families that
suffered fatalities. The government has also offered Rs 20,000
in compensation to each family whose house was damaged or destroyed
by an earth slip. But they are insisting on at least the Rs
150,000 that each tsunami family was paid and some are insisting
on more. It is well known that many of the permanent houses
that foreign NGOs are building for tsunami victims cost Rs 500,000
or more.
Mr. V Navaratne and his wife and three children
lost to an earth slip all but one room of their small house
in Patanawatta in Suduhumpola which is just outside the Kandy
city. His is one of eleven families that were affected by earth
slips in Suduhumpola. The house is built on temple land. Mr.
Navaratne works as a casual labourer in the town. He says that
the KMC has rejected his appeal for assistance on the grounds
that the house is located outside KMC jurisdiction. Mr. Navaratne
says that he can't afford to relocate because his livelihood
depends on working in the town. He and his family now occupy
the single remaining room of his house. He complained that one
main reason for earth slips in his area was “rich people”
constructing large houses on higher elevations and destabilizing
the area.
A resident of thirty years in Suduhumpola
Ms. N M Shabna who shares her house with three extended families
also lost a part of her house to an earth slip. She complains
that she and her family have not received any official assistance.
She pointed out that the KMC constructed retaining walls and
drainage in the rich suburbs but ignored such requirements of
the poorer neighbourhoods.
GA Mr. Jayaratne cites two reasons why
the public is resisting some of the remedial measures that officials
have proposed. First, displaced people are reluctant to move
out of the areas that they have lived in because of employment
and social reasons. Second, those who occupy houses in vulnerable
locations are reluctant to listen to early warning and move
out because they believe that the risk of an earth slip is bearable
compared to the economic and other losses that they would suffer
by moving out.
The GA said that in his view Sri Lanka
had a sufficiently strong legal framework to regulate construction
to minimize earth slip risk. But the law is not properly implemented,
he said. He was critical of the UDA, KMC and other local authorities
that permitted construction on lands that had a high risk of
earth slips.
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JVP Accuses Fellow Politicians of Undermining
Mahaweli Reservoirs
Politicians using their power and influence
have taken over government-owned protected highlands in the
Mahaweli catchment area and imperiled the Mahaweli reservoirs
such as Kothmale and Victoria. Two JVP members of the Central
Provincial Council G B Dissanayake and Sunil Wickremasinghe
have made this allegation against their fellow politicians of
all colours and all levels in a resolution that they have presented
for consideration to the Council. They claim that such lands
are being cleared and utilized for various activities causing
soil erosion and sedimentation of the reservoirs. The two Councilors
also state that some of the activities that the alleged miscreants
have started pollute the reservoirs. They want the government
to take action to stop what they describe as illegal land takeover.
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