Mangaluru: AAP volunteer brings water-meter tampering racket to light

- Media Release

Mangaluru, 13 Feb 2015: A member of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and a doctor in a sting operation at 2nd Cross, Bendore, here, exposed water-meter-tampering racket by municipal billing agent at a construction site.

 

Dr Deepak showing the video at the Press Club here on Thursday February 12, said that the meter reader who came to issue water bill to his under-construction house, offered him ‘help’ stating that the bill had amounted to Rs 21,000 but he could minimize it sharply.

 

According to the doctor, the agent brought down the bill from Rs 21,000 to Rs 6,000 by reversing the meter reading while ensuring that the seal of the meter remained intact. The agent charged as much as Rs 2,500 from him.

 

 

Dr D’Souza said that he let the person to show him the tampering tactics to bring the scandal to the limelight, by video shooting the process.

 

Dr D’Souza also said that when he approached Lokayukta office, they expressed helplessness over the issue and even when he approached municipal commissioner Hephsiba Rani Korlapati, hhe did not get the positive response.

 

According to Dr Deepak, a few municipal employees working in computer division and junior engineer also have a role in the scandal. ‘If a fraud amounting to Rs 15,000 can be done at a 1,000 square feet building during one meter reading, the municipal body certainly be losing several crore of rupees as hundreds of multi-storeyed buildings in the city are on the rise,’ said Dr D’Souza.

 

AAP activists were also present at the media conference.