The High Court on Thursday directed the government to ensure access to drinking water in public spaces within the next year, emphasising that safe and usable water is a fundamental right of citizens.
The bench of Justice Md Ashraful Kamal and Justice Kazi Waliul Islam delivered the verdict while disposing of a 2020 suo motu rule on the matter.
The previous rule sought to know whether it is the responsibility of the state to provide safe drinking water to all citizens, or whether the right to safe water can be declared as a fundamental right of every citizen.
The court in the verdict also ordered the government to preserve all water sources in Bangladesh so that they do not deteriorate 鈥� that is water does not dry up, becomes unsafe or polluted.
The court also instructed the authorities to make drinking water available at an affordable price within the next 10 years.
Key public spaces covered by the court directive include courts, places of worship, hospitals, railway stations, markets and airports.
The government has been ordered to submit a progress report to the Supreme Court registrar general鈥檚 office by 2026, outlining steps taken to ensure clean and affordable drinking water in public spaces.
The court observed that the state has a duty to ensure access to clean drinking water, emphasising that 鈥榳ater is life.鈥�
It cited Article 32 of the constitution, which guarantees that no person shall be deprived of life or personal liberty except in accordance with law.
Rights lawyer Manzill Murshid, who provided his expert opinion as amici curae in the case, told 抖阴精品 that city corporations and municipalities were responsible for ensuring access to clean drinking water in urban areas, while the Department of Public Health Engineering was tasked with providing safe water in rural areas.
鈥業f the ruling is implemented, the country鈥檚 largest section of population will be benefitted and people will be protected from water-borne diseases,鈥� lawyer Mohammad Humyun Kabir Pallab, who assisted the court as amici curae in the suo motu rule, told reporters on Thursday.
A 2024 investigation by the Bangladesh Competition Commission exposed alarming practices by the country鈥檚 leading bottled water companies, revealing an unjustified surge in prices.
Between January and September in 2023, the price of half-litre bottled water rose from Tk聽15 to Tk 20. The companies attributed the hike to rising import costs, increased raw material prices and currency fluctuations, the BCC study suggested otherwise.
The investigation found that the actual increase in production costs was minimal and did not justify the inflated prices of bottled water.
By collectively setting unreasonably high rates 鈥� violating the Competition Act of 2012 鈥� private companies have undermined fair competition, prioritising profits over public welfare.
Bottled drinking water was virtually unknown in Bangladesh until the 1988 catastrophic flood, which contaminated water sources and triggered an outbreak of waterborne diseases, including hepatitis.
The crisis led to widespread distrust in the Water and Sewerage Authority, creating an opening for private companies to capitalise on public fear.
What began as an emergency response has since morphed into a multi-billion-taka industry, making bottled water an everyday necessity.
Urban residents are bearing the brunt of the water crisis.
WASA has increased its water tariff 14 times in the past 13 years, yet its supply remains undrinkable. Households have to spend extra money to make the water potable 鈥� either by boiling it (a costly option given skyrocketing gas prices), purchasing water purifiers, or resorting to bottled and jarred water.
Despite these price hikes, WASA has done little to restore public confidence by ensuring a safe supply.
Instead, it has entered the bottled water market itself, raising question about its priorities and the growing commercialisation of an essential public resource.