Mayor wants a separate Act for BCC autonomy

Mayor wants a separate Act for BCC autonomy
The Asian Age

City mayor P.R. Ramesh on Tuesday urged the state government to come out with a separate act for the Bangalore City Corporation on the lines of the Karnataka Municipal Act to give greater autonomy to the BCC in tax collection and undertaking of developmental works.

Speaking at a meet the press programme organised by the Bangalore Press Club, Mr Ramesh said the BCC needs around Rs 4,500 crores to Rs 5,000 crores annually to carry out development works. The state government however allocates only around Rs 1,400 crores to the BCC annually, he added.

“A separate Act would enable the BCC to function more independently in matters relating to levy of taxes which would help bridge this gap. For example, the BCC could levy tax on cellphone towers, increase house rent tax, property tax and advertisement tax to mobilise additional resources,” Mr Ramesh explained.

Mr Ramesh also said that he has undertaken various steps to improve the BCC’s revenue collection by implementing administrative reforms due to which the BCC was able to save Rs 5.45 crores alone on vehicle maintenance. He further said that the BCC has stepped up its revenue collection drive to achieve the Rs 350 crores mark by the end of 2004-05 which is nearly one and half time more than the previous year’s tax collections.

Mr Ramesh said that the state government had not released Rs 95 crores to the BCC in lieu of the Octroi tax which was withdrawn in 1994-95. He said the BCC was earning nearly Rs 32 crores through Octroi in 1994-95, but after the system was disbanded the BCC lost a major source of revenue. Mr Ramesh also urged the state government to extend the Mayor’s tenure from one year to five years to enable him implement development works effectively.