City

Chennai Metro Water: New Connection, Tanker Booking, Helplines

Metro Water takes new water and sewer connection applications only online and processes complete ones in 15 days. Here is the fee table, tanker booking and complaint numbers.

20 October 2026

Chennai FalconMr. Parthasarathy aka Chennai Falcon is passionate about…

Metro Water connections and tankers, simplified

Chennai Metro Water now accepts applications for new water and sewer connections only online, and says it processes a complete application within 15 days. The board repeated the point in September after complaints that middlemen were taking money to arrange connections, DT Next reported. You do not need to visit an office, and you should not pay anyone except through the portal.

The same board, formally the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB), runs the Dial for Water tanker service and a 24-hour complaint line. Here is what each involves.

Applying for a water or sewer connection

Applications go through the board’s new connection portal. The process described by officials in September runs like this:

Register, enter the property details and upload the documents asked for, usually proof of ownership and the latest property tax receipt.
A field engineer inspects the premises.
If everything is in order, the demand amount is sent to you online, within 15 days of a complete application.
Pay the demand through the portal. Work on the connection follows.

The charges reported by DT Next apply separately to the water and the sewer connection:

Property	Charge per connection
Individual house up to 500 sq ft	Rs 100
House above 500 sq ft, up to 100 sq m	Rs 5,000
House from 100 to 200 sq m	Rs 7,500 per dwelling unit
Apartments (each unit up to 200 sq m)	Rs 7,500 per unit
Commercial buildings	Rs 7,500 per equivalent dwelling unit

Larger buildings also pay Infrastructure Development Charges of Rs 319 per sq m. This applies to buildings of ground plus two floors or more, those with more than six homes, and commercial buildings above 300 sq m. The report mixes square feet and square metres in the size bands, so confirm the exact band for your house on the portal before paying.

Connections are being extended in areas still being networked. DT Next listed water supply work in the Manali, Madhavaram, Valasaravakkam, Alandur, Perungudi and Sholinganallur zones, and sewerage in localities such as Porur, Ramapuram, Manapakkam, Palavakkam, Kottivakkam and Uthandi.

Booking a tanker through Dial for Water

If your area has no piped supply, or supply is suspended for repairs, you can order a Metro Water lorry through the Dial for Water booking site. A News Today report from 2024 described the online service, and a later one set out the terms: bookings between 7 am and 3 pm, payment online only, and no cancellation once a booking is confirmed.

The rates published at that time, according to News Today, were:

6,000 litres: Rs 475 for domestic use, Rs 735 for partly commercial use
9,000 litres: Rs 700 domestic, Rs 1,050 partly commercial
16,000 litres: Rs 1,200 domestic, Rs 1,785 partly commercial

These figures are from August 2024. Check the booking page for current prices before you order. In localities with low pressure or no connection, Metro Water also runs free street tanks and mobile tankers, which continued even during this month’s 24-hour shutdown in south Chennai for maintenance at the Nemmeli desalination plant, DT Next reported.

Complaint numbers and grievance meetings

For a burst pipe, no water, contaminated supply or an overflowing manhole, call the board’s 24-hour helplines, 1916 or 044-4567 4567. These were announced for round-the-clock monsoon complaints, News Today reported. Note the street, the nearest landmark and your consumer number if you have one. Write down the complaint number you are given, because the area office will ask for it if you follow up in person or at a grievance meeting.

For problems that drag on, use the monthly grievance meeting. Metro Water holds one at the area office in each of the city’s 15 zones, usually on the second Saturday from 10 am to 1 pm, chaired by the area’s superintending engineer. The September session covered supply, sewerage, water and sewer tax, and pending connection applications, according to DT Next. Take copies of earlier complaints and receipts.

During the monsoon

Metro Water says it has desilted about 6,000 km of sewer lines twice ahead of the rains and has machines and generators on standby, DT Next reported on 9 October. Officials asked residents not to flush cloth, diapers or sanitary pads, which block lines, and to repair rainwater harvesting structures. Of about 12 lakh buildings, around 2 lakh need such repairs, they said.

Quick answers

How do I apply for a Metro Water connection?

Online only, through the board’s new connection portal. Complete applications are processed in 15 days.

What does a connection cost for a small house?

Rs 100 each for water and sewer for an individual house up to 500 sq ft, as reported in September 2026.

Can I cancel a tanker booking?

No. Confirmed Dial for Water bookings cannot be cancelled.

What is the Metro Water complaint number?

1916, or 044-4567 4567, both round the clock.

Information checked against official sources on 18 October 2026. Fees, dates and rules can change; confirm on the linked official pages before acting.