Title: Perceptions and choice of payment behaviour of consumers for rural pipe water services in an eastern Indian state

Authors: Tapasi Mohanty; Himanshu Sekhar Rout

Addresses: Biju Patnaik Institute of Information Technology and Management Studies (BIITM), Bhubaneswar-751024, Odisha, India ' Department of Analytical and Applied Economics and RUSA Centre of Excellence in Public Policy and Governance, Utkal University, Vani Vihar, Bhubaneswar-751004, Odisha, India

Abstract: Poor invoicing and collection practices of rural water supply have an implication for the institution's financial sustainability. This research aims to explore the perceptions and choice of payment behaviour of consumers for rural pipe water services. The sample unit is rural household consumer. Descriptive statistics and multinomial logistic regression technique are used to find out the result. This study found that colour of the water and the interruption of supply are the main sources of consumer dissatisfaction. The concept of free water service, why should we contribute when others do not, is the main reason for non-payment. The consumers stated that reasons for connecting to pipe water were found to be the key variable for all payment choices with respect to non-payment.

Keywords: rural water services; consumer perception; water quantity and quality; revenue collection; sustainability; payment choice.

DOI: 10.1504/IJW.2022.130823

International Journal of Water, 2022 Vol.15 No.1, pp.1 - 20

Received: 13 Jul 2022
Accepted: 26 Sep 2022
Published online: 11 May 2023 *

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