Mangaluru: A certified water meter reader attached to the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) was caught on camera on Tuesday, while tampering with the water meter and issuing a ‘manipulated bill’ at a house located at Kadri, Mangaluru.
The video footage which is exclusively available with newskarnataka.com was captured by Dr. Deepak D’Souza, a professor at the Yenepoya University.
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As per the MCC officials, the water billing system has been outsourced to a private agency, which is expected to check the individual water meters and issue water bills to consumers on behalf of it. There are over 81,000 water connections in the city and the MCC earns annual revenue of Rs 36 crore from water billing. However, the agency employee was seen tampering with water meters, thus causing revenue loss to the city corporation.
In the video shows, the employee, after a brief conversation with the house owner, carefully, using a hammer, removes the upper portion of the water meter. He is then seen manipulating the water meter reading, clicking its picture and then issuing a bill.
The employee, who identifies himself as Thaufiq, is also seen on camera, telling the house owner to pay him Rs 2,500. “I have saved you from paying Rs 10,000 to the city corporation. When I had come four months back, I had stopped the meter from running. Consequently your water consumption was not measured for four months. I have now adjusted it with a minor increase to save you money”, he is seen telling the house owner.
Not just that. The agency employee also revealed on camera, that he tampers with water meters which are mostly located at construction sites. “Water consumption in the households is less, while in the construction sites, its more. Some builders are co-operative”, he says in the video footage.
The secret sting also records the agency employee as saying that he has to share the money earned illegally. “I have to pay the people who work in the computer section in the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) and the Junior Engineer (JE)”.
When confronted with this information, both mayor Mahabala Marla and Executive Engineer Naresh Shenoy, told newskarnataka.com that it is not easy to tamper with water meters. Mr. Shenoy said that he would suspend any employee found tampering with the meters.
A frequent occurrence?
Dr. Deepak D’Souza, who is also a social activist, told newskarnataka.com that he decided to secretly to video record the entire scene, after no official took action. “Previously, the agency employee had come to my house and offered to tamper. I agreed only to see how he does it. I saw him removing the water meter, reversing its reading and fixing it back intact. I was supposed to pay Rs 21,000 to the MCC as it was a construction site. He brought it down to Rs 6,000 and he asked me to pay Rs 2,500”, he said.
Mr. D’Souza said that, following this, he complained to the Upa-Lokayukta in Mangaluru. The officer expressed helplessness to take action claiming that the private agency is a non-government entity. Hence, I met city corporation commissioner Hephsiba Rani Korlapati to bring it to her notice. The commissioner only said that she would be outstation for two days and promised action after she was back.
