UT set to hike parking charges

Rajinder Nagarkoti

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 7

On the pattern of house tax, the UT Administration is all set to “directly” hike the paid parking charges in the city.

Recently, a five-member committee of the Municipal Corporation (MC), which was formed to finalise the terms and conditions of paid parking lots in the city, had rejected the proposal of the civic body to hike the paid parking charges in the city.

Thereafter, MC officials had discussed it with top officials of the UT Administration. Sources said the MC and the UT officials were in favour of hiking the paid parking charges to increase the revenue of the civic body. 

A senior UT official said in 2003, the MC had not agreed to introduce paid parking in the city, but the UT had gone ahead with it. For the past 12 years, the parking charges — Rs 2 for two-wheelers and Rs 5 for four-wheelers — were not increased. There was a dire need to hike the paid parking charges to increase the revenue of the MC and soon a decision would be taken in this regard, he said.

Recently, the UT Administration had directly imposed house tax on city residents despite opposition from the MC.

The MC committee had rejected the proposal to hike the charges and had also proposed to end the paid parking system in the city. The committee had also proposed to privatise the paid parking system on the pattern of maintenance of roundabouts in the city.