Parking mafia thrives in city

Parking mafia thrives in city
BY CHANDRASHEKAR G.
BENGALURU







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I Pay-and-park banned, but BBMP turns a blind eye I
The parking mafia seems to be undeterred by the ban on the pay-and-park scheme and continues to collect a parking fee from motorists and bikers in many parts of the city.

The BBMP has turned a blind eye to the practice which persists even three years after the pay-and-park scheme was banned across the city by the then mayor R. Narayanaswamy with the consent of former chief minister Dharam Singh.

Most of the attendants at the parking lots have been around since the pay-andpark system was in force, say BBMP sources.

While tenders for collecting a fee at identified payand-park slots were usually bagged by a cartel of contractors, the advantage of the scheme was that vehi cles were parked systematically and attendants helped people park and take out their vehicles. The system also fetched the BBMP a fair amount of revenue.

The money which is collected by the attendants at the parking lots is shared by a mafia run by contractors, for whom the illegal collection of fee has obviously become a money spinner.

Attendants in parking lots do not accept less than Rs 3 for a two-wheeler and less than Rs 10 for four-wheelers and they don’t even give a parking slip, says Dr Koushik.

Although the traffic police often suggested reintroduction of the pay-and-park scheme, there was no response from the authorities for a long time. The state government has now approved introduction of a metered parking scheme for 37 identified roads, which will adopt the Brigade Road model and be managed by a shopkeepers association. However, tenders invited by BBMP for introducing the metered parking have not received much of a response, sources said.

BBMP additional commissioner (east) Puttaswamy says the police has been asked to keep on eye on attendants who collect fee illegally from the public. Complaints can also be made to the BBMP control room on 22975803, he adds, assuring that such attendants will be rounded up and handed over to the police.

“The Prahari vehicle has been patrolling the city to check this practice. The people too should protest and not pay the fee. BBMP cannot monitor collection of parking fee on private grounds, but collecting the fee in public places is illegal,” he says.