Bangalore: The city’s civic agency, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike issued a circular which orders all eateries, hotels, malls and multiplexes to provide clean, pure water free of cost to the customers.
BBMP commissioner N Manjunath Prasad had issued the circular when a complaint was received highlighting inconvenience at hotels, multiplexes and mall when it comes to drinking water. The circular further orders these places project a sign such as ‘drinking water available here’, reports OneIndia.
The complainant also called it unfair to force customers to pay for drinking water, which is a right.
“People are asked to pay for drinking water though it is the responsibility of the hotel or eatery to provide it for free. In some cases, eateries provide water but the surroundings are unhygienic,” she said.
According to her complaint, a mall in West Bengaluru has 34 food outlets on one of its floors and drinking water is available at one remote corner. In most malls, customers are forced to either run around to find water or pay for water bottles.
The same is the scenario in most multiplexes. The complainant feels that remotely placed water filters and denying free water are a tactic used by owners to force customers to buy packaged water.