THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Left Front meeting has approved the recommendation to increase the water tax in the state. Water tax will be hiked at the rate of one paisa per litre. There would be an increase of Rs 10 per unit (1000 litres) for domestic consumers. The Department of Water Resources had earlier approached the government to increase the water tax in the state. The government then decided to discuss the matter in the Left Front meeting before making a decision as it was an issue that would probably cause public outrage.

During a press conference, LDF convener EP Jayarajan said that today’s Left Front meeting looked at the request and approved raising the water tax. Families living in BPL will not be affected by the increase, he added.

“The water authority has suffered a loss of Rs 2391 crore. At present, it is finding it difficult to even pay the employees. LDF accepted the recommendation to increase the water tax to make the functioning of the Water Authority more efficient,” Jayarajan said.