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DUSIB plans toilets with improved technology for all slum dwellers

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The Hindu       01.09.2014  

DUSIB plans toilets with improved technology for all slum dwellers

The Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) has formulated a ‘slum sanitation strategy’ for providing toilet facilities to slum dwellers across the city. The Board announced on Sunday that it planned to provide better sanitation facilities and upgrade the existing toilets in JJ clusters.

DUSIB chief executive officer Amar Nath said new toilets with improved technology would be made available and Rs. 42 crore would be spent for creating these facilities. DUSIB has been using bio-digester-based disposal systems in some of its new toilet blocks and mobile toilet vans, he said.

Presently, there are 685 JJ clusters, which are on land owned by various State and Central Government agencies, where DUSIB, civic bodies, and other government agencies have provided toilet facilities.

USIB has provided 307 toilet blocks and will take over all the toilet blocks which are presently with the civic bodies, Mr. Nath said.

“To improve sanitation in the slums , there is a need to devise an integrated slum sanitation strategy and an advisory committee on sanitation strategy in slums comprising NGOs and experts working in the field of sanitation has been constituted,” he said.

DUSIB has been using bio-digester-based disposal systems in some of its new toilet blocks and mobile toilet vans

 

MCC to soon introduce online payment of property tax

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The Hindu   01.09.2014 

MCC to soon introduce online payment of property tax

Online payment of property tax in the city will soon be a reality, consequent to upgrading of software.

The proposal was originally mooted in 2010. However, the concept failed to take off due to technical and administrative issues as the Municipal Reforms Cell had insisted on fine tuning the software on one hand and digitising the property database of MCC on the other, before it could be launched.

M.B.L. Bhyrappa, chairman, Standing Committee on Finance, Taxation and Appeals Committee, told The Hindu that payment of property tax online could be a reality as early as “within a month” as some of the technical glitches had been sorted out.

Fine-tuning of software

“The software had to be fine-tuned to indicate a 15 per cent upward revision in property tax once in three years under the self-assessment scheme (SAS) as stipulated by law and this aspect has been incorporated in the new software. Hence, we expect the online payment facility to become a reality within a month,” said Mr. Bhyrappa.

Bank

At present, only ICICI bank account holders with net banking facility can make property tax payment.

Impact

When launched, the efficiency in tax collection is expected to increase as many registered property owners tend to postpone payment of tax as they loathe standing in lengthy queues.

But the launch of online payment mechanism will obviate the need for the public to stand in queue and finish the payment at the click of a button.

Setback

Meanwhile, the MCC plan to augment its revenue by bringing the mobile towers under tax-net, has received a setback. Mr. Bhyrappa said there was a High Court judgement against it, following which, the MCC was forced to revoke its earlier order making it mandatory to collect Rs.12,000 a tower as property tax.

Resource-base

The MCC had viewed the mobile towers as a “resource base which could be tapped to enhance its revenue collections. The MCC had argued that owners of vacant sites and those permitting installation of mobile towers on rooftops were doing so by charging exorbitant rent from the mobile service providers and hence it was a commercial transaction.

But, they were not paying any tax to the MCC. Mr. Bhyrappa said the court order had restrained them from implementing it.

Advertisement rates

In the meantime, the MCC has revised the advertisement rates to shore up its revenue.

The hike in tariffs is almost double but the rates vary from area to area depending on their commercial importance. In Zone A, the advertisement rate is Rs.70 a sq. ft. of hoarding, up from the earlier rate of Rs. 35 a sq. ft.

Target

The MCC aims at collecting Rs. 90 crore by way of property tax this fiscal against which, it had collected Rs. 45 crore so far. Besides, Rs. 20 crore arrears due from last year was pending collection.


Originally mooted in 2010, the proposal could not be introduced owing to technical reasons

Implementation of new system expected to augment property tax collection

 

Corporation resolution seeks check on prices in Supplyco

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The Hindu         28.08.2014  

Corporation resolution seeks check on prices in Supplyco

Corporation asks State to monitor prices in Supplyco stores

The Kozhikode Municipal Corporation Council on Wednesday passed a resolution urging the State government to withdraw the increase in the prices of essential commodities in the Supplyco stores.

M.Radhakrishnan of CPI(M) who presented the adjournment motion said that the prices of commodities in Supplyco stores have risen so much that they match the prices in other stores.

He said that there was already a steep price rise during Eid-ul-Fitr and another steep rise so soon would burn the pockets of the common man. Councillor V. Sudheer of the CPI(M) said that the price rise was normal during the Onam season, but the State government did not have the political will power to control it like in earlier years. Councillors Zakariya P. Hussain (Congress), P.Avaran (IUML), C.P.Salim (Congress), Janamma Kunhunni [(CPI(M)] and K.Balagopalan (Congress) spoke on the occasion. To lighten up the situation, Councillor K. Ravindran of CPI(M) recited a poem by Vyloppilly Sreedhara Menon. The motion was unanimously passed. Later the Council passed a 170-point agenda. The councillors T. Moideen Koya [CPI(M)], Nabeesa Seithu (IUML), T.P.Koya Moideen [CPI(M)], Beeran Koya [CPI(M)], T.Hassan [CPI(M)], C.P.Salim (Congress), P.Kishenchand (SJ-D) and N.C.Moinkutty (SJ-D) presented calling attention motions regarding issues in their respective wards.

 


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