DJB earned Rs 178 crore more despite free water: Delhi CM

Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday lashed out at the critics of his government’s free water scheme for small households, saying the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) had earned Rs 178 crore more than last financial year despite providing 20,000 litres of water free to Delhiites every month.

“When we had announced the free water scheme, the critics said the DJB’s finances will drown. But the DJB earned Rs 178 crore more than its last year’s revenue,” he said after launching the DJB’s m-Sewa app for online water bill generation and payment. “Everyone kept saying that providing 20,000 litres of free water will destroy the DJB, but now it seems that these big economists will need to revise their theories to explain this increase in revenue,” Mr Kejriwal said.

Asserting that the reservation expressed over wastage of water has also been proven wrong, the chief minister said, “Data shows that people have been saving water due to the scheme as they have restricted their usage to ensure they do not have pay much.”

Attributing the increase in the DJB revenue to the AAP government’s faith in people, he said, “We believed in Delhi’s public which has led to this miracle of increased revenue along with saved water. The AAP government’s mantra is empowering the people.”

Mr Kejriwal said his government was trying to provide water to areas which had poor supply as well as slums and other areas inhabited by poor in the next two years.

The m-Sewa app will allow one-tap online payments, instant self-bill generation, option to view previous bills and water consumption graph. Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, water minister Kapil Mishra, food and supplies minister Imran Hussain and senior government officials, including chief secretary K.K. Sharma and DJB CEO Kesav Chandra, were also present on the occasion.