More than 1,200 consumers in Mysuru paid their water bills online since the facility was launched three weeks ago.
Sources in Vani Vilas Water Works (VVWW), the drinking water supply wing of Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) told The Hindu that more than ₹10 lakh had been collected online since the facility was launched on June 28.
The online payment facility offered by MCC is in addition to the 12 VVWW service centres and Mysuru One centre, where the consumers can pay bills in person.
There are more than 1.45 lakh water connections in the city and VVWW officials hope the shift in mode of payment from physical to digital will pick up in the coming days.
The digital payment facility, launched by MCC through Bharat Bill Payment Systems (BBPS) of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), facilitates consumers to pay bills through online banking, debit or credit card, digital wallets or payment apps.
Those wishing to opt for digital payment of their bills should visit the MCC website www.mysorecity.mrc.gov.in and click on the tab ‘Click here for online payment of water bill’. They will be guided to the BBPS webpage, which gives them the option of making the payment through various banks and apps. When they choose their respective banks, they have to choose the biller category as ‘Water’ and Biller Name as ‘Mysuru City Corporation’ from the drop down menu.
An official in VVWW, who handles technical issues, said the smoothness of the transaction depends on the user interface of the respective banks. “Most banks like SBI, Canara Bank and Bank of Baroda have a user-friendly interface. Most of the online payments received so far are from users who opted for netbanking,” the official said.
In the event of the consumers finding it difficult to navigate the digital payment process, they can contact the MCC’s Control Room (0821-2418800, 2418816).
VVWW officials said digital payment wallets like MobiKwik and Bhim have already been enabled for payment of water bills by the MCC. Soon, other digital wallets like Google Pay and PhonePe will also be enabled while Paytm is in testing phase.
Meanwhile, the MCC is also collecting consumer data through Google forms on its website. After collecting the consumer’s name, number, address and mobile number, the VVWW will send the monthly bills through SMS alerts, which will also include a link to BBPS website for making the payment online.