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Kundapur: The Kundapur City Municipal Council has come under criticism after issuing a water bill to a government high school, despite government orders that mandate free water supply to government schools and high schools.

The incident was reported on Wednesday when the Vaderahobli Madhusudana Kushe Government High School received a water bill of Rs 34,148 for water supply. The bill included Rs 2,016 for December and Rs 32,132 as pending dues, with instructions to clear the amount by February 2.

During the ongoing SSLC preparatory examinations, messages circulated on social media claiming that the municipal chief officer had instructed staff to disconnect the school’s water supply and place an “end cap” on the tap connection unless the bill was paid immediately.

However, Chief Officer Anand J said the water connection had not been disconnected, and that the instruction was only related to recovery of pending dues. He also said that if there was an official order granting exemption, the school should provide a copy.

Local residents and education supporters questioned why a government school was billed at all, stating that government orders have been in place for several years directing local bodies to provide free or priority water supply to government schools, including for drinking water and toilets.

They also said that if there were pending dues, the matter should have been taken up through the education department and district authorities instead of putting pressure directly on the school.

Officials from the education department said they had not received any prior information about pending water dues related to the school.