The Madikeri CMC is gearing up to enforce the  installation of water meters as a means to check wastage of water.

Inspite of the district receiving heavy rainfall, the district faces acute shortage of water during peak summer. Water from Kootuhole—the source of supply of water to the city gets wasted. There are 5,360 water connections including 4,842 houses, 202 commercial complexes  and 310 public taps in the city limits.

The CMC which will receive Rs 4.50 lakh from the SFC grant will be used for installing water meters. The state government has given its nod for the same. In fact, the CMC has already invited tender for the supply of water meters. The CMC will supply water meter free of cost to its consumers to ensure that there is no additional burden on the consumers.

The total population in the city is 33,000. About 52 lakh litre water is supplied daily, of which 35 per gets wasted. If the water meter is installed, then the wastage can be curtailed to some extent, said engineer Shivakumar.

“This will also encourage people to check on wastage of water. The water tax for households and commercial purposes will be decided by the Karnataka Water Board. The payment depends  on the amount of water consumed by the consumers,” the official said. 

Palibetta gram panchayat has installed water meters successfully in Virajpet taluk. There are 300 water connections and all the water connections are metered.