Bengaluru Residents Will Now Have to Pay ‘Garbage Tax' as Covid-19 Crunch Hits Civic Body's Revenues

At a time when people are already struggling with coronavirus-hit economy which led to the cut down in household expenses, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is all set to levy Rs 200 per month as cess for door-to-door garbage collection.

The BBMP has come up with a plan to implement bye-laws on Solid Waste Management (SWM), which will necessitate house owners to pay money to hand over household garbage to conservancy workers.

"The bye-laws on solid waste management have been notified. The BBMP will collect a service charge from property owners to give segregated garbage to conservancy workers," Bangalore Mirror quoted BBMP Commissioner BH Anil Kumar as saying.

This charge will be over and above the SWM cess that is already included into your property tax.

Karnataka government in its order dated June 4 said, "Residential waste generators (all categories) have to pay Rs 200 per month towards solid waste management services. Commercial and institutional waste generators have to pay Rs 500 per month if they generate 5kg of waste per day, Rs 1,400 per month if they generate 10kg of waste per day, Rs 3,500 for generating 25kg, Rs 7,000 for 50kg of waste and Rs 14,000 for 100kg per day.”

Moreover, the civic body will also ask the owners of vacant site to pay 20 paise per month for one square foot which sums to Rs 24 per month if they own a 30x40 site.

Meanwhile, NS Ramakanth of Solid Waste Management Round Table believes that this extra charge on collection of garbage would be a burden on property owners in Bengaluru city. "BBMP must focus on segregation of waste and encourage those who convert waste into compost by waiving garbage cess that is being collected along the property tax. This has been a demand for some time now," he suggested.

Commenting on the new directive by the state government, Sampath Ramanujan, secretay, Federation of Residents, Communities and Enterprises in Greater Whitefief said that they have been demanding the cancellation of garbage tax, claiming that the "BBMP garbage contractors have not been picking garbage from their apartments."

Speaking briefing on the new service charge notification, BBMP Special Commissioner D Randeep said that the new bye-laws on SWM would be implemented after a detailed plan in prepared and after discussions are held with the authorities concerned and elected representatives.

"It is a service charge for collecting garbage from your doorstep. The thrust will be on 100 per cent door-to-door segregated waste collection and street sweeping monitored from the solid waste management control room," Bangalore Mirror quoted Randeep as saying.