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Bidding cancelled, REIP prepares new plan: Water meter installation delayed

* ADB objects to REIP’s bidding for installation of 50,000 meters at Pindi city’s commercial and domestic units

By Aamir Yasin

RAWALPINDI: Installation of 50,000 water meters at the city’s commercial and domestic units has been delayed for four months after the Asian Development Bank (ADB) seriously objected to the bidding process launched by Rawalpindi Environment Improvement Project (REIP) for award of the contract.

The REIP had to purchase meters and hand them over to the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) for installation by end of June this year.

Sources in the REIP told Daly Times that according to the ADB criterion the REIP had to invite tenders from both domestic and foreign bidders for award of the contract, but the latter only invited tenders from the domestic bidders thus constituting a violation. The bidding was held in May in which two local firms were short-listed.

The bidding was cancelled and document fee handed back to the two bidders. The sources said the REIP had prepared a new plan and sent it to ADB for approval that would take at least four months.

The sources said that according to the new plan, the project would be carried out in two phases. In the first phase, the agency will install 6,000 meters at the city’s commercial units and 44,000 at the domestic units in the second phase.

The advanced meters will enable WASA to detect any fake connection and water theft to improve water supply to the city. The cost of the meter and installation fee would be recovered from the consumers because the money for the purchase of meters would be released by the ADB.

The sources said that after installation of meters, the residents would use 10 percent to 30 percent less water than they were using now.

According to WASA, the total bill consumers are 85,718 out of which 78,551 are domestic and 7,167 commercial. A total of 50,991 consumers, including 47,985 domestic and 3,006 commercial consumers, pay their bills regularly, while 34,727 consumers, including 30,566 domestic and 4,161 commercial consumers, are always behind hand with their bills.

The sources said that the installation of water meters would help the agency check excess billing and wasteful use of water.

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