The Tamil Nadu government has taken some early steps to popularise the concept of user charges for urban infrastructure and utilities, such as road and water supply. But it has not taken any step to replicate the same in the rural areas. This dichotomy would further widen the disparities in civic amenities in the urban and rural landscape. A major factor preventing the state from pricing utilities in the rural area is the lack of political will and the vexed issue of equity-based pricing of such services.