YEREVAN, DECEMBER 6, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian government allocated 1 billion 289 million drams to the State Committee of Water Economy for the subsidization of increase of the water supply tariff, finance minister Vardan Aramyan said during the discussion of the 2018 state budget draft in the Parliament.

“You know that recently the Public Services Regulatory Commission approved a new water tariff according to which the tariff increased by 11.4 drams. This was followed by the prime minister’s statement according to which the government should make efforts for the citizens not to feel the burden of this increase”, the minister said.

He stated that the subsidization will be implemented in stages. The 2018 subsidization will be implemented so that all citizens will not feel the burden of this increase, and in 2019 people socially in need will be targeted.

Tsarukyan faction MP Sergey Bagratyan expressed concern that the company ensuring water supply can make a practice increasing the tariff when they feel that the government provides funds from the budget and subsidizes that increase. “Aren’t you concerned that next year they again can increase the tariff, knowing that the government will subsidize it?”, the MP asked.

The finance minister assured that the company cannot just increase the tariff since there are tough formulations in the contract in which case the company can submit an application for increase of the tariff.