The Hindu Karnataka (Managaluru) 08.09.2016
No need to collect SWM cess from places of worship: MCC
The council of the Mangaluru City Corporation has
decided that there is no need to collect solid waste management (SWM)
cess from public places of worship in the city.
The
civic body not collecting the cess from them has come under the scanner
of the office of Comptroller and Auditor General of India.
The
CAG which audited the accounts of the corporation from 2012-13 to
2014-15 has objected to not imposing SWM cess on temples, churches,
mosques and other public places of worship.
It is estimated that the city has about 231 public places of worship.
The
audit report has said that even if a minimum of Rs. 600 was imposed as
SWM cess on them per annum the civic body should have got Rs. 4.15 lakh
from them in three years.
Whip in the council M. Shashidhar Hegde told
The Hindu
that the civic body collected the SWM cess from halls rented out in the premises of places of worship for commercial purpose.
On
the other hand, public places of worship are exempted from paying
property tax under Section 110 of The Karnataka Municipal Corporations
Act, 1976. Even though the audit report has raised objection there is
exemption under law.
Hence
the council has decided that there was no need to collect the SWM cess
from the main structures of public places of worship.
Officials
at the civic body had placed the objection raised in the report before
the council for taking a decision. The council has dropped the subject
and hence it would not be tabled again, Mr. Hegde said.
The
corporation collected the SWM cess along with property tax since
2014-15. Section 103 (B) (2) of The Karnataka Municipal Corporations
Act, 1976, empowered the civic body to collect the cess with property
tax.
The CAG had objected to not imposing SWM cess on temples, churches and mosques
