Dhaka WASA to raise water prices from Jul 1

The authorities have decided to increase the water price by 10 percent from Jul 1

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The price of water supplied by the Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority, or WASA, is increasing again. The authorities have decided to raise the water price by 10 percent from Jul 1.

Dhaka WASA has set the new water price at Tk 16.70 per 1,000 litres for residential users and Tk 46.20 per 1,000 litres for commercial connections.

Currently, residential users pay Tk 15.18 per 1,000 litres while commercial users pay Tk 42 for a similar amount of water.

Dhaka WASA declared the new prices in a notice issued to the media on Wednesday.

The notice said the water prices have been increased according to Article-22 of the WASA Act 1996 for readjustment with inflation. It will take effect from Jul 1.

The decision will also be effective for unmetred holdings, deep tube wells, under-construction buildings, and all types of water and sewage charges, including minimum bills, the notice read.

Dhaka WASA raised the water prices in July 2021. When it tried to hike the prices again in 2022, the validity of the decision was challenged through a writ petition at the High Court. The court later issued a rule asking why the price hike of WASA water without a law would not be declared illegal, halting the price hike at that time.

Water prices were increased by Tk 2.90 per unit in April 2020. Before that, water prices were hiked in September 2019, in July 2018 and in August 2017. Dhaka WASA labelled the hikes ‘price adjustments’.