The Pune Municipal Corporation will begin pilot meter readings and issue dummy water bills in selected zones within a month as it moves toward implementing its equitable water supply scheme, PMC Additional Commissioner Pavanit Kaur said on September 2.
The civic body said work on the eight-year-old scheme is 88% complete. Water tanks, pipelines and meters have been installed in 60 of the 144 zones identified for the project. The maintenance and repair work in these completed zones is expected to be handed over to Larsen & Toubro, according to the PMC.
The pilot phase will measure household water consumption through installed meters before billing is introduced. Dummy bills will be issued in zones where the required infrastructure has been completed, allowing the civic administration to begin testing the meter-reading and billing process before commercial billing starts.
The scheme was approved to provide a more uniform water supply across Pune and reduce water losses. The PMC has already increased water tariffs for the project and plans to use metered consumption to determine usage and address leakage in the distribution network.
Under the project, 83 water tanks and approximately 1,000 kilometres of new pipeline have been installed or taken up. Around 275,000 water meters are planned, of which approximately 40,000 remain to be installed. The water supply department has prepared a plan to complete the remaining meter installation, the report said.
Kaur said that 63 of the 83 planned water tanks had been completed. A further 16 tanks are expected to become operational by September 10. The civic administration is also dealing with difficulties in securing space for pipeline work in some locations and resistance to meter installation in certain areas.
The PMC has said it intends to provide metered water to residents across the city after the remaining infrastructure and installation work is completed. The timing and scope of actual billing will depend on the completion of works in individual zones and the outcome of the pilot exercise.
The scheme is also being monitored through review meetings involving the Chief Minister’s Office, according to PMC officials cited in the report. The civic administration is expected to begin issuing dummy bills within the next month in zones where tanks, pipelines and meters are ready.
