National Platform against Water Privatization
Citizens Front for Water Democracy
Dear all,
NPAWP releases its Citizens Manifesto on Water
Water has become a big issue in forthcoming Delhi assembly elections. Even the availability of water is more than its requirement citizens are facing acute water shortage. In Delhi the water availability is 360 Crore liters that means per person availability of water in Delhi is more than 225 liters per person per day still city is thirsty. NPAWP & CFWD see poor water governance, management and corruption in DJB a main reason as water is not reaching to peoples tap. CFWD is of the opinion that this scarcity is created rather than real and is deliberate to privatize the people's water.
NPAWP has decided to raise people's agenda of water during forthcoming assembly elections and hence demanded following from all political parties;
People’s Manifesto for Assembly Election in Delhi:
The political parties or coalitions of parties which would form the government in Delhi must commit for the following:
- Water will be a prime agenda and an obligatory function of their government in Delhi. They would provide an efficient water service with adequate quantity and quality as per BIS norms. The water pricing policy of their government will not be based on the fraudulent World Bank principle of full cost recovery model.
- Their party government will provide a minimum quantity of 70 Liters per capita daily (LPCD) free of cost potable water to each family member in order to ensure water security along with the food security under the National Food Security Act 2013. We firmly believe that food security can’t be achieved without ensuring water security.
- 70 LPCD of water will be approx. 10 kilolitres (Kl) of water to each household every month without any discrimination and it will be declared as “life line water” for the consumption of drinking, cooking, personal and domestic hygienic requirements without any discrimination of the rich or the poor.
- The BPL Families will not be charged for water usage up to 20 Kiloliters per month.
- Their party government must commit to set up a network of Piaos (Water kiosk) and install public stand posts in different locations to restore this traditional service to the public in Delhi. The water Kiosks will be meant for the poor, homeless and other destitute communities on the roads or in jhuggi jhopries, as well as for passerby on the roads to ensure availability of free of charge safe drinking water to everybody in Delhi, including those who cannot afford to pay.
- Their government will Stop and Rollback Privatization and Commodification of water services in Delhi: The privatization or commodification of water is against the spirit of a welfare state. Private Corporations have no social obligation to provide lifeline water or set up water kiosk. We believe that to ensure water security, we have to re municipalise our water services because water security won’t be possible under the privatized water system.
- As explained earlier, there are several instances which indicate that private water projects in Delhi are full of corruption and are not sustainable. Through water privatization and PPP, the Delhi Government is facilitating the corporate control over water in Delhi and a repetition of our bitter experiences of power sector in water which would lead to huge rise in water tariff. Increased water tariff would be unaffordable for the common people, but the private corporations will earn huge profits. Therefore the new government will set up a fair inquiry on all privatization (and outsourcing) projects in Delhi Jal Board and all culprits after fair trail must be sent behind bars.
Feel free to contact:
S. A. Naqvi
National Coordinator (NPAWP)
