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| A parking lot at a commercial area near Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. Telegraph picture |
Bhubaneswar, Sept. 2: Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) will now collect parking tax from major business establishments that have parking lots on government land. For the common man, parking will become free at these spots.
The business houses will pay fees to the corporation and manage the parking lots.
“Earlier, major business establishments with parking lots on government land did not have to pay any fees. This new move will help generate some revenue. We have already selected 47 such places for collecting parking fees,” said Anil Kumar Patnaik, secretary of BMC.
BMC sources said the new plan would also provide relief from the problem of illegal parking lots. “There have been incidents in which unauthorised persons had been collecting parking fees. Also, there have been times when more than the specified amount was being collected. The new plan will mitigate these problems as business establishments will manage everything,” said an employee who looks after BMC parking lots.
He added that if you come across anyone collecting illegal parking fees, you should inform the nearest police station or the BMC authorities.
“Not only major business establishments, private health care units, major hotels will also be included in the plan,” said mayor Ananta Narayan Jena, who had recently conducted raids on some illegal parking lots in the city.
According to BMC guidelines, parking fee for bicycles and two-wheelers is Re 1 and Rs 2 respectively and that for four-wheelers and heavy vehicles is Rs 10 and Rs 20 respectively. These fees are for four hours of parking at any of the BMC parking lots. It is also mandatory to furnish a rate chart and to hand out parking tickets to customers at these places.
At present, 14 parking lots of BMC are in operation in the city. While nine of the parking lots have already been auctioned, the rest are being managed by the corporation.
Illegal parking is a major concern here. Three months ago a person was killed near Kharavela Nagar following a dispute over illegal parking.
Residents of the capital are happy with the move. “The situation worsens during festive occasions such as Raja, Ganesh Puja, Dusshera and New Year. At some parking lots we are asked to pay more than the usual charges. This move will be helpful in curbing illegal parking,” said Subhash Sahoo, a local resident.
BMC officials also said that in some places mischievous persons tamper with the no-parking markers. “We have to repaint the markers at regular intervals, but after some time we find that the “no” has been erased from the no-parking signs,” said an employee of BMC, who is looking after the parking lots in the city.