Water waiver scheme till August 15, says Delhi water minister

Delhi govt extends water bill LPSC waiver till August 15: Parvesh Verma says strong response, calls it final extension of scheme

Water minister Parvesh Verma on Friday announced that the Delhi government has extended its late payment surcharge (LPSC) waiver scheme for water bills till August 15, citing strong response from consumers across the capital. He added that this would be the final extension of the scheme, which was earlier scheduled to end on Saturday (January 31).

The scheme allows consumers to pay outstanding principal amounts with a complete waiver of late payment surcharge.

According to Delhi Jal Board (DJB) data, more than 330,000 consumers have availed of the scheme so far, leading to the waiver of nearly ₹1,500 crore in penal interest and the recovery of over ₹430 crore in principal dues. The extension was announced following requests from elected representatives, resident welfare associations (RWAs) and consumers seeking more time to clear long-pending dues without the burden of accumulated surcharge, Verma said.

The scheme allows consumers to pay outstanding principal amounts with a complete waiver of late payment surcharge. Verma said the overwhelming response showed citizens’ willingness to clear dues when billing systems are perceived as transparent and fair.

“The people of Delhi want to pay their water bills. What they want is honesty, transparency and correct billing. This massive response to the LPSC waiver scheme proves that Delhi’s citizens are responsible and ready to cooperate when the system is fair,” he said.

Data shared by the minister showed that 330,908 consumers had benefited from the scheme till January 29. During this period, ₹430.26 crore was collected towards principal dues, while ₹1,493.70 crore in late payment surcharge was waived.

Verma said this marked a significant increase compared to the previous LPSC waiver scheme implemented between October 2022 and March 2023, when around ₹235 crore in principal dues was collected.

“This clearly shows that when governance is clean and intentions are honest, people come forward. The scheme has mobilised nearly double the amount in a much shorter time compared to 2022,” he said.

Officials said the extension was prompted by written representations from RWAs, requests from MLAs and other public representatives, and delays caused by the reorganisation of zonal revenue offices. The government also acknowledged that legacy billing errors from earlier years had contributed to the accumulation of arrears.

“The previous system created fear through inflated and faulty bills. We are fixing that broken structure. But reform takes time and citizens deserve breathing space. That is why we have extended the scheme,” Verma said.

He added that cash-counting machines were being installed at several offices as people had to wait for long hours while staff manually counted payments. He urged consumers to make online payments wherever possible.

While the focus so far has been on domestic consumers, Verma said attention would now turn to non-domestic defaulters as well. According to DJB estimates, nearly 87,000 non-domestic connections, including government offices and private establishments such as hotels and malls, have outstanding principal dues of over ₹2,068 crore.

“Reforms will not stop with domestic consumers. Large defaulters — whether government departments or private entities — must clear their principal dues. Public money cannot be allowed to remain blocked because of administrative negligence. Even if interest is waived, recovering the principal will help fund several new water and sewerage projects,” he said.

Officials added that several irregularities in the department had been addressed and regular water bills were now being sent to over 85% of households, up from 40% when the government took charge in February last year. A help desk has also been set up for complaints related to inflated bills and other issues that can be resolved on the spot. Verma urged residents to get their bills checked and pay them at the earliest.

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