WASA to no longer subsidize water supply to Gulshan, Banani

 
Managing Director of Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (WASA) Engineer Taqsem A Khan has informed that Dhaka WASA will no longer subsidize water supply to the Gulshan and Banani areas of the capital.

LGRD Minister Md Tajul Islam announced the major change in decades-old policy at a program in Dhaka's Press Institute Auditorium on Friday. The Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives, or LGRD, oversees the operation of Dhaka WASA, the state agency responsible for supplying running water in the city.

Questioning the ethics of providing the same subsidies to all Dhaka residents irrespective of their income levels, he said: "Why should someone living in Gulshan and Banani pay the same as someone who is living in a slum [in Dhaka] or Jatrabari?" he said.
The minister said every neighbourhood will have a different tariff rate for water consumption.

"No more subsidies. People living in Gulshan and Banani have to pay more compared to people living in other areas," Tajul said.
He also emphasized that the authorities should follow the same policy to fix holding taxes and other utility charges like gas and electricity.
In an event last month, Dhaka WASA proposed resetting its tariffs such that low-income people can get water at a much lower rate than the wealthier, by splitting Dhaka city into 10 zones.