K'taka govt contemplating hiking water tariff by 1 paise per litre: DK Shivakumar
Bengaluru, Mar 14 (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Friday said the government was planning to hike the water tariff by one paise per litre, claiming that water rates in Bengaluru have not been revised since 2014.
In view of the losses, the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) has proposed a hike of seven to eight paise per litre, he said.
"But I have told them that 7-8 paise is too much. The government is contemplating a one-paise hike per litre. We will discuss the matter with city MLAs before making a decision," said Shivakumar, who also holds the Bengaluru Development portfolio.
The minister was responding to Congress MLC Ramoji Gowda, who urged the government to expedite the supply of Cauvery water to households given the approaching summer.
"We had a difficult year last year. As many as 7,000 borewells dried up, forcing the government to take over private water tankers. We have executed the Cauvery 5th Stage project, which is providing water to 110 villages," he said.
March 22 is Water Conservation Day, and the government has decided to observe a month-long campaign to create awareness about water conservation, he added, in a statement issued by his office.
Shivakumar alleged that builders had constructed large apartment complexes but had not paid deposits to the BWSSB.
"They have taken connections illegally. We have issued notices to them," he said.
He also warned that the government would take over water tankers this summer as well.
"The water tanker business has become a mafia. We have also decided to fill all the lakes with treated water to help recharge groundwater. The Cauvery 6th Stage plan is also ready," he said.
Noting that many people were using drinking water to wash livestock and water gardens, the minister added, "Many of them are covering bare ground with concrete, which affects water absorption. We will take action on these issues. The water conservation month will help create awareness about all these concerns."
Responding to BJP MLC Keshava Prasad, who raised concerns about compensation for those displaced by the Alamatti Dam and objections raised by Maharashtra, the Deputy Chief Minister said, "I believe an all-party delegation must go to Delhi and urge the Centre to issue a Gazette notification on the third stage of the Upper Krishna project."
When MLC Nagaraj Yadav drew attention to delays in waste disposal, Shivakumar said, "Solid waste management has become a mafia. A tender was called in the past, but vendors collectively moved the court, halting all work."
He added, "The court has yet to deliver a judgment. Some MLAs are blackmailing us over garbage dumping pits—I don’t want to name them. They are demanding Rs 800 crore for their constituencies. Garbage trucks have been parked in Mahadevapura constituency for several days now, and it has become a major issue."
"We are planning to visit Indore to study their waste management model. We haven’t called for a tender, yet the Opposition is claiming I have made Rs 15,000 crore," Shivakumar stated.
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Can't say when I'll return to India; legally barred from leaving UK: Mallya to Bombay HC
Mumbai (PTI): Fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya, facing multiple cases of fraud and money laundering, told the Bombay High Court on Wednesday that he cannot say when he will return to India as he is legally barred from leaving the UK.
In a statement submitted through his counsel Amit Desai to the high court, Mallya said he did not have an active passport after it was revoked and hence, he cannot give a definite date of return to India.
The statement was submitted after a bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad made it clear last week that it would not hear Mallya's plea against the order declaring a fugitive economic offender until he returns to India.
The court had then asked the former liquor to clarify whether or not he intended to return to India.
Mallya, based in the United Kingdom since 2016, has filed two petitions in the HC -- one challenging an order declaring him a fugitive economic offender and the other questioning the constitutional validity of the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act.
The 70-year-old liquor baron is accused of defaulting on multiple loan repayments of several thousand crores and facing money laundering charges.
The businessman, in his statement to HC, said he cannot give a definite date for his return as he does not have his Indian passport, which was revoked by the government in 2016, and also because there are orders of courts in England and Wales that prohibit him from leaving the country.
"Mallya is not permitted to leave or attempt to leave England and Wales or apply for or be in possession of any international travel document. In any event, the petitioner is unable to precisely state when he will return to India," Desai read out the statement in the court.
The senior counsel reiterated that Mallya's presence was not required in the country for the court to hear his pleas against the fugitive tag and the provisions of the Act.
"If he (Mallya) were to appear in India, then all these proceedings would be rendered irrelevant as the statute says that once the offender appears in the concerned court of law, then all these orders would be set aside," Desai told the court.
The bench directed the Union government to file its reply to Mallya's statement and posted the matter for further hearing next month.
Mallya was declared a Fugitive Economic Offender in January 2019 by a special court hearing cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The businessman left India in March 2016.
