Vijayawada city all set to impose User Charge for collection of waste and garbage

VIJAYAWADA: The Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) is all set to impose User Charge for collection of waste and garbage. It would collect Rs 30 as user fee in slums and Rs 120 in other areas of the city.

The VMC said that as per the Solid Waste Management Rules 2016, user charge can be levied on those who generated waste and this would be the fee for its collection and safe disposal. The user fee should be proportionate to the quantum of the waste generated.

The Central government has emphasized on certain preconditions like fixing of meters for electricity consumption under the free power scheme, hike of taxes in urban and municipal limits under its reforms if civic bodies should get financial assistance beyond the limits imposed by the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act. These are conditions also for allotment of Central government-sponsored schemes.

The Opposition parties are alleging that user charges are also part of the central government’s reform steps and this would put an extra financial burden on the people in these Corona times.  

Nearly 1 lakh households and 1 lakh commercial establishments in the city would come under the user charges norm.

The VMC, while preparing to collect the user charges, has prepared a chart with details of the charges to be collected from households and commercial establishments.

The user charge for large restaurants and hotels above 1,000sqft area would be Rs 1,500 per month. Medium restaurants and hotels with area of 501 to 1,000 sq. ft have to pay Rs1,000, and small restaurants and hotels up to 500 sq. ft area Rs 500. Bars and restaurants have to pay Rs 3,000 per month. Roadside eateries, messes and juice shops would need to pay Rs 300, while bakeries and sweet shops Rs 350.

Three-star hotels will have to pay Rs 10,000, lodging homes with more than 50 rooms have to pay Rs 5,000, lodgings between 20 and 50 rooms Rs 3,000 per month. The lodgings with less than 20 rooms would pay Rs 750.

Wholesale shops would pay Rs 200, retail traders Rs 150, wholesale vegetable and retail shops Rs 200, and chicken and mutton shops Rs 300. Private small commercial complexes below 10 shops have to pay Rs 1,000, private commercial complexes of medium level with 11 to 25 shops have to pay Rs 2,500.  

Movie theatre will have to pay Rs 2,500 per screen, supermarkets and automobile showrooms Rs 750, educational institutions with more than 20 classrooms Rs 3,000, educational institutions of medium level with 11 to 20 classrooms Rs 750.

Clinics and dispensaries with up to 20 beds would pay Rs 1,500, Clinics, dispensaries and laboratories with 21 to 40 beds would pay Rs 2500.  Clinic/dispensary with more than 40 beds will be charged Rs 10,000.

Function hall/marriage halls/festival halls, exhibition and fairs (above 5,000 sq. feet Rs 15,000, functional hall, marriage hall/festival hall/exhibition and fairs with area of 2,500 sq. ft to 5,000 square feet will be charged Rs 7,500.

The VMC said the user charges shall be increased by at least five per cent every year.

VMC commissioner V. Prasanna Venkatesh said collection of user charges is inevitable in order to ensure proper disposal of the waste. User charges are collected before the sevent of every month by the VMC staff. For late payment, a penalty of Rs15 will be collected from households.

For households, the user charge is Rs 120. Six divisions of the city are developing into model divisions under the Clean Andhra Pradesh Programme and user charge would be collected first from these divisions and later it would be expanded to other areas.