RAWALPINDI: Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) on Wednesday finalised Rs5.156 billion budget for 2021-22, showing a deficit of over Rs1 billion.

Punjab government will provide Rs1.061 billion to Wasa for the development schemes in the city areas.

The finance committee of the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) gave approval to the budgetand the authority’s governing body would soon give a final approval.

The total outlay ofbudgetis Rs5.156 billion with Rs1.3 billion deficit. The civic agency will generate Rs1.370 billion from its own sources including water charges from the domestic and commercial consumers as well as bulk consumers like Pakistan Army and other organisations and Rs450 million will be received from the Punjab government under urban immovable property tax.

Punjab government will also give Rs200 million subsidy to Wasa in lieu of not increasing the water charges for domestic, commercial and bulk comsumers.

According to budget estimates, Rs985.461 million will be spent on salaries of employees and Rs559.2 million on operation and maintenance of the water supply system. Electricity charges of tube wells, water works and water filtration plant at Rawal Dam would eat away Rs969 million.

Wasa spokesman Umer Farooq said Rs158 million will be paid to Capital Development Authority (CDA) for water coming from Khanpur Dam. He said Rs86.350 million had been set aside for miscellaneous expenditures.

Mr Farooq said that the Punjab government would give Rs1.061 billion for development works including Rs840.700 million to bring water from Chahan Dam, Rs50 million for replacement of old and rusty water supply lines under Gastro Prgramme, Rs50 million will be spent to lay down water supply lines in union councils 74,75, 76 and 77.

He said Rs50 million would be spent on water supply scheme in Kahkashan Colony, Rs10 million on establishment of small sewerage treatment plant and Rs30 million on upgradation of sewerage system in Satellite Town.

He said that the finance committee had asked Wasa to collect aqua charges, fee for vetting building plans for commercial and domestic units in the city areas, fee for installing hoardings on overhead water tanks and encourage cellular companies to install tower on the premises of overhead water tanks.

“The basic reason of these steps is to increase the income of the Wasa so that the civic agency did not rely on provincial government for development schemes,” he said.

On the other hand, another senior official of Wasa told Dawn that the agency’s expenditures were increasing every year as instead to get water from the dams, the civic agency is installing more tube wells.

“In 2008, there are 200 tube wells in the city which increased to 460 in 2021. The electricity bills, staff salaries and other expenditures have been increased but the government is paying the subsidy as per old rates,” he said.

Published in Dawn, June 24th, 2021