Apart from putting those who settled their dues earlier at a loss—thereby creating a moral hazard, where people start expecting such exemptions and holding off payment—the waiver obviously will apply only to households with metered connections. As per the government’s own data, nearly a third of all Delhi households, mostly in slums and unauthorised colonies, don’t have metered connections and are forced to buy water from over-priced, erratic tanker services. As a result of the Delhi government’s water waiver policy, inequitable access to water will not just get entrenched, it will be paid for by the government. With over R2,800 crore due from customers, the scheme will erode Delhi Jal Board (DJB) already scant profits—Kejriwal had proudly announced that DJB made a profit of R178 crore last year—there will perhaps be precious little left to expand the DJB pipeline network for some time to come, meaning the most vulnerable will remain at the mercy of over-priced water from private sources.
