The Water Resources Management Authority (WARMA) says three thousand four hundred and fifty one (3, 451) bore-holes have been registered from the time the ground water and bore-hole Statutory Instrument came into effect in March this year.

Speaking at the media interactive breakfast meeting in Lusaka, WARMA Compliance and Regulation Manager, Alexander Chomba says the authority has also received two thousand three hundred and forty nine bole-hole applications.

He says of the two thousand three hundred and forty nine bore-hole applications received, twenty applications have been rejected.

Mr. Chomba says twenty bore-hole application have been rejected due to failure by the applicants to meet the required standards that allow a bore-hole to be drilled.

He has cited short distance to a possible contaminating source from the bore-hole as one of the major reasons for rejecting the applications.

Mr. Chomba also disclosed that eighty eight drillers have been registered, out of which eighty four have been given the licenses, adding that the other four have not been given the license because they have failed to meet the requirements.

And speaking at the same event WARMA Acting Director General Lemmy Namayanga says the authority had set up a six month time frame to allow all the people that had boreholes before the SI on ground water and borehole was introduced to remit their borehole tax.

Mr. Namayanga says 30 September 2018 is the deadline for all borehole owners that have not settled their bore tax to do so.

He adds that after 30 September 2018 WARMA will send out inspectors to inspect the bore-holes and check if people owning bore-holes have complied with the law of paying the bore-hole tax.

Mr Namayanga notices that all boreholes that will be unregistered after 30 September will be considered as illegal.

He says a person that contravenes the regulations commits an offense and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding one hundred thousand penalty units or imprisonment.

He has therefore urged all bore-hole owners to comply and register their bole-holes.

And Acting Authority Secretary Emmanuel Mumba says borehole tax was arrived at in an effort to promote sanity in among drillers.

He says the authority had observed with regret the increasing number of unregulated dirillers in the country.