Howrah, March 5: People living in areas under the Howrah Municipal Corporation will have to pay for their water from October 1.

The decision to impose the water tax was unanimously passed at a general meeting of the civic body today as the Opposition, which has 12 councillors in the 50-member body, stayed away.

“For domestic use, buildings occupying up to 800 sq ft will have to pay Rs 20 every month. For buildings between 800 and 1,200 sq ft, the levy will be Rs 30 a month. For each additional 200 sq ft, Rs 10 will have to be paid,” said Mamata Jaiswal, the mayor-in-council member in charge of water supply.

If an area remains without water for a week, residents will not have to pay any water tax for that month. “If the pressure is low, half the tax will be levied,” Jaiswal said.

The Opposition had been vocal against the tax since the corporation decided on it at a meeting on February 9. A final decision was to be taken on February 26 but that meeting could not be held as the Opposition members went on the rampage in the civic body.

A large police contingent was posted at the corporation building this morning.

“This is a ridiculous deci-sion. At least 70 per cent of the water the corporation supplies is unfit for human consumption,” said Subhas Dutta, general secretary of a residents’ association.