LAHORE – The Defence Housing Authority (DHA) has declined to pay sewerage charges to the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) planned to be levied on all housing societies from this year, Pakistan Today has learnt. Sources told Pakistan Today that LDA, mother organisation of WASA, had approved a plan to collect sewerage charges from the DHA, Model Town and other 213 housing societies in its board of governor’s meeting.
WASA MD Javed Iqbal said that the summary had been submitted to Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and it was likely to be approved soon. He said that notices would be served to the DHA and other societies to collect the sewerage charges. Defaulters would be taken to task come what may, he added. Senior WASA official said that WASA was expected to earn approximately Rs 1 billion from sewerage charges. A DHA official said that WASA had no authority to impose such charges and the DHA had made all expenses to lay down the entire network of drains and sewerage in the area.
The DHA used Hadiyar Drain, property of the Punjab Irrigation Department, instead of WASA to dispose of sewerage water, he said adding, “How could WASA claim to levy sewerage charges on DHA?” A WASA official rebuffed the DHA’s stance asserting that that DHA had been using Hadiyara Drain and Sattukatla Drain for prompt discharge of its sewerage. WASA Planning and Development Director Zahid Aziz said that the Hadiyara and Sattukatla drains belonging to WASA had been under the DHA’s use since long.
