Demand for Octroi system, separate Municipality Act

Demand for Octroi system, separate Municipality Act
Deccan Herald

Former mayor P R Ramesh, along with other Congress corporators called on Governor T N Chaturvedi on Wednesday to and sought the re-introduction of Octroi for the benefit of BMP and enactment of a separate Municipality Act for Bangalore.

Seeking financial autonomy, the Corporators complained that the BMP is being deprived of the benefits of Octroi and entry tax.

“The BMP has its own sources, but they are not sufficient to meet the demands of the City. The State government collects Rs 20,000 crore in the form of Octroi, commercial, excise, professional and vehicle taxes from Bangalore alone. What we got till last year was only Rs 72 crore as Octroi compensation, against the recommended Rs 95 crore,” Ramesh pointed out. This year the State Finance Commission has announced Rs 120 crore to the BMP. “This is hardly enough to finance the development projects. In the end, it is the citizens who are not getting the benefits,” Ramesh observed.

In the meeting that lasted 30 minutes, the corporators also recommended a creation of a separate Act to govern Bangalore.

Pointing out that the case of Bangalore is different from other cities, they said that the City, with over 40 lakh population, deserves special focus. They also wanted the CMCs to be given the same status as BMP.

Chaturvedi promised to discuss the issue with Finance and Urban Development Departments.

Corporators Krishnappa, Venkatesh Reddy, Shanta Kumari, Padmavati, Vasanth Kumari and Muniswamappa participated in the meeting.

The corporators are planning to meet the chief minister in the next two days.