Political parties in Dharan declare a protest against the steep rise in the price of drinking water

In opposition to the Dharan Water Supply Management Board’s decision to raise the price of drinking water, ten political parties in Dharan have announced a number of protest initiatives.

The parties had written the Board on July 26 and requested that it reverse the decision in a matter of 72 hours.

After the Board showed ‘indifference’ to their demands, they resorted to protesting.

They intend to perform sit-ins at the offices on Sunday, present a memorandum to every ward office on Friday, and engage in interactions with stakeholders on Thursday.

The water tap’s installation will now cost Rs20,000 after an increase of Rs5,000. The board used to charge Rs. 15,000 for water supplied by a half-inch pipe in the past. Additionally, it increased the hole-change price from the current Rs3000 to Rs8000.

The Dharan sub-metropolis, led by Mayor Harka Sampang Rai, has control over the board.

The parties contend that Mayor Rai started the price increase with the intention of controlling the water supply system’s installation, maintenance, and repair expenses.

“The chair of the CPN-UML in Dharan, Harkajang Aveng, said that Mayor Rai has approved the price increase several times. Mayor Rai had promised to address the city’s drinking water crisis and prioritized maintaining the existing drinking water supply lines and bringing in new water projects to address the issue in the sub-metropolis.”

On July 16, the first day of the new fiscal year, the amended tariff went into effect.

Water was piped 40 kilometers to Dharan from the Kokaha stream at Mayor Rai’s initiative.

In addition to prioritizing the upkeep of the current drinking water supply lines and bringing in new projects to address water issues in the sub-metropolis, Rai has pledged to address the drinking water crisis in Dharan.

For the drinking water project, thousands of people and organizations inside and outside the nation contributed about Rs40 million to the Dharan Drinking Water Campaign, which was spearheaded by Mayor Rai. Mayor Rai claims that the campaign built the drinking water project using the donated funds.