Few takers for AMC Jal, civic body consumes 60%

To provide pure water at quality price, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has launched its own water brand, ÁMC Jal. Sadly, there are no noticeable takers for it.

When they had launched the brand on May 1, 2017, civic authority had announced that they will be selling the water at Amul outlets, placed at public garden premises. Other than Amul's outlets, at Kankaria Lakefront, there are two shops selling AMC Jal. However, hardly four to five outlets are buying water from AMC.

"There are around 250 Amul outlets in public garden, but only around 30 of them are operated by Amul. Rest are on franchise basis, and they are not buying AMC Jal," said a senior AMC official.

Giving data of the water consumption, the officer said, "In a year, around 2.5 lakh bottles of one litre and 7.25 lakh bottles of 200 milliliter have been consumed. Out of which, 60-70% water was consumed by AMC only."

The market price of one litre bottle is Rs 10 and 500 ml bottle is Rs 5, which has been decided by the civic body.

Interestingly, the state government has purchased AMC Jal thrice, totaling 8,000 bottles. Post which, even the government has stopped buying AMC Jal. "A private player has offered water at a cheaper price and hence the state government has stopped buying AMC Jal," a senior official said.

Meanwhile, AMC incurs zero cost for the bottled water. There is packaging cost, which is borne by the contractor, who is handling operation and maintenance.

When asked why was the product not marketed well, Ahmedabad mayor Gautam Shah said: "We will announce the launch of the product at the Sabarmati Summer Festival, and market it after that. It is a good idea and people should get cheaper and quality water."

However, senior Congress leader Surendra Baxi, said: "Why they are not promoting their own brand of water? I have never seen the officials talking about it?"