Delhi BJP demands immediate rollback of garbage collection fee

The Delhi BJP has strongly criticised the AAP-led Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) for introducing “user surcharge” on garbage collection,

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calling it an unjustified burden on citizens and demanding that it be immediately halted.

BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor accused the MCD of pushing the surcharge “under the pretext of improving waste collection” without holding public consultations or obtaining the House’s approval.

“The Mayor must answer why, till now, he has neither called a meeting of the Municipal House on this issue nor directed the Commissioner to stop the surcharge collection,” Kapoor said. He claimed that the AAP-led MCD was rushing the decision without addressing ground realities, and called the move a deliberate imposition on Delhi’s residents.

The BJP cited that nearly 75 per cent of households in Delhi rely on private sanitation workers for garbage disposal, paying between Rs 50 and Rs 100 per month — amounting to Rs 600-Rs 1,200 annually.

“Now the AAP government wants to charge at least Rs 1,200 more through the user surcharge, effectively doubling the burden,” said Kapoor.

He also highlighted that most group housing societies and commercial complexes already manage their waste independently. Therefore, they should not be asked to pay extra. “This user surcharge makes no sense when the Municipal Corporation of Delhi lacks the infrastructure to collect garbage from 70 per cent of the city’s areas,” he added.

Referring to a similar proposal made in 2021 by the erstwhile East Delhi Municipal Corporation, Kapoor noted that the BJP mayor at the time had rejected the plan, but “the present Mayor is merely issuing statements and not acting.”

Delhi’s apex body of RWAs, United Residents Joint Action (URJA), has also voiced its opposition to the surcharge. The BJP demanded that the MCD suspend the implementation immediately and hold consultations with RWAs, group housing societies and commercial bodies before taking any further steps.

The BJP spokesperson also raised concerns over the livelihoods of private sanitation workers who currently provide door-to-door garbage collection.

Mayor seeks CM’s intervention

New Delhi: A political row has erupted over the imposition of user charges for solid waste management by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), with Mayor Mahesh Kumar writing to Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, urging her to withdraw the decision. In his letter, shared on X, Kumar termed the move an “undue burden on citizens” and alleged that the proposal to collect user charges, along with house tax, was never brought before the MCD House. “The decision was implemented behind the scenes by Municipal Commissioner Ashwani Kumar without any discussion or approval in the House. This goes against public interest,” the mayor stated. He also questioned the corporation’s preparedness to offer door-to-door waste collection services, pointing to the poor performance of concessionaire firms across the city.