On August 1, 2020, some residents of Lagodekhi held a protest demanding the removal of drinking water meters, cancellation of accrued payments, and the provision of safe water. According to the protesters, they did not have irrigation water, so they were forced to use drinking water to irrigate their plots, which resulted in monthly utility bills exceeding 100 GEL — an amount they said was too high.

The protest was organized by an initiative group and was joined by members of opposition parties.

“The town of Lagodekhi has two rivers, yet they charge us 42 tetri per ton of water. This is the government sticking its hand into our families’ pockets and acting insolently. The meters must be removed, and the water fee must again be calculated based on the number of household members — but even that fee should reflect the difficult social conditions of citizens,” said Giorgi Enukidze, a member of the Municipal Council from the party “European Georgia.”

Former head of the Lagodekhi municipality and current chair of the Municipal Council, Karlo Jamburia, told “Reginfo” that issues related to water quality had been resolved and residents now receive chlorinated and filtered water. As for the tariff, Jamburia said that discussions about reducing it had taken place with representatives of the National Energy and Water Supply Regulatory Commission (GNERC) and the Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure.

He added that irrigation channels had been installed for part of the population, while others had not yet been connected to the system.

After the protest, the water supply company announced that the dismantling of the meters would not be possible. Regarding debt repayment, the company offered subscribers the option to spread payments over a period of three months to three years.

Protesters agreed that if their demands were not met, they would refuse to pay the water fees as a form of protest.