Bhubaneswar, Feb. 24: The municipal corporation's decision to hike parking fees has not gone down too well with the residents.
Commuters complained that the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) has not been able to provide basic amenities properly, so they couldn't just increase the parking fees arbitrarily.
The municipal corporation officials, however, claimed that in order to provide better services, public needed to pay for it like residents of all the metro cities.
Following amendment to the BMC Regulation on User Charges (Amendment), 2014, earlier this week, two-wheeler and three-wheeler owners will have pay Rs 5 for parking vehicles for four hours in the BMC designated parking lots and a four-wheeler owner will have to pay Rs 20 for the same period of time. If a person wants to park his vehicle for four to eight hours, he will have to pay double the fees.
Earlier, the motorcycle owners had to pay Rs 2 and car owners Rs 10 for parking in these spaces for four hours.
In support of their claim, residents said that if the parking lot operators would not be responsible for the loss or damage caused to their vehicles, why would they pay an increased amount.
"By raising the parking fee, BMC is going to support some businessmen who operate parking spaces in the city and the public will not be benefited from it," said Piyush Ranjan Rout, a resident.
A few people, however, found some sense in the decision. "This is good as our money will directly go to the civic body unlike earlier it was going to contractor's pocket," said Satyanand Nayak, another resident of the city.
The corporation officials said even the hiked fees were very less compared to other cities in the country. This will help the corporation collect more revenue. "We do not feel it will be a burden on the public. Rather it will help develop parking lots and streamline vehicles on the road," said a senior officer.
However, things need to be done slowly as existing contractors had been awarded the contracts as per the earlier rates.
"We will first chalk out things and then start collecting the raised fee from the next financial year," said the officer.
Moreover, the corporation will charge user fees for solid waste management and those found littering public place will also be fined.
A senior official said earlier there was no provision of charging fees from residents for door-to-door garbage collection. However, the new law ensures that the residential households pay between Rs 50 and Rs 200 per month per unit. Like the residential houses, traders will also have to pay the user fees for their business establishments for solid waste management.
Independent shops or those in shopping malls will have to pay between Rs 100 and Rs 500 per month, according to the area they occupy. For every extra square foot more than 1,000, the shopkeepers will have to pay Rs 5 more. Same is the case with the traders in daily markets.
Earlier, many business establishments had been left out from such fee structures and the corporation had to incur heavy loss. All types of business and educational establishments and government and private offices have been brought under this user fee collection system. Besides, the new rule also allows the corporation to slap fines of Rs 1,500 to Rs 3,000 for stacking construction materials on roadsides and Rs 200 on individuals littering in public.
"We need to change people's mindset and educate them about the need to maintain a clean environment. Collection of user fees from slum areas that have been added for the first time in the fold is another aspect," said Subhransu Mishra, deputy secretary in charge of tax collection.
Sources said they would look into the aspect whether they would hire more people or use the available personnel to implement the new rule. "We will decide many such aspects within a few days and then implement it," said an official.
