Mullana MLA Varun Chaudhry opposes fire tax being charged by Barara MC

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Ambala, September 25

Mullana Assembly Constituency MLA Varun Chaudhry on Sunday raised objection on the fire tax being charged in Barara by the municipal committee (MC). He said with the fire station building lying incomplete and no fire services available, the tax being charged was unjustified.

No fire station, residents still being charged

When there is no employee and fire tenders, residents are still being charged 10 per cent of the property tax as fire tax. The MC is charging a specific tax for the services it is not providing, which is unjustified. Varun Chaudhry, MLA, Mullana assembly constituency

Providing services from nearby stns

There should be no objection if the fire tax is being charged because in case of emergency, fire service is being provided by the government and fire tenders are pressed into service from nearby stations. An official of the municipal committee

The foundation stone of the building was laid in 2019 by the then BJP MLA Santosh Sarwan, but the project is not yet complete.

Congress MLA Varun Chaudhry said, “A huge amount from the budget has been spent on the construction of the building and instead of utilising it, the building has been left incomplete. Stray animals keep roaming in the building and such negligence is not acceptable. Moreover, when there is no employee and fire tenders, the residents are still being charged 10 per cent of the property tax as fire tax. The MC is charging a specific tax for the services it is not providing, which is unjustified.”

“In case of any fire incident, fire tenders come from Ambala Cantonment and other stations, and it takes a long time for the fire tenders to reach here. The public money is being wasted. Appropriate action should be initiated immediately in the interest of the residents of Barara. Not only the tax for the current year, but the residents are being charged arrears too when there is no service available. I will take up the matter with the government. The residents should get the refund with interest”, he added.

An official in the municipal committee said 10 per cent of the property tax was charged as fire tax as per the rules. There should be no objection if the fire tax was being charged because in case of emergency, fire service was being provided by the government and fire tenders were pressed into service from the nearby stations.

Mohan Lal, Secretary of the Barara Municipal Committee, said he recently joined and added, “The issue of the building lying incomplete has come to my notice and I have visited the place. The construction work is complete as per the tender issued, but the finishing work of the fire station is pending for which an estimate of Rs 25 lakh has been made. A tender will be issued next month. The work will be completed on priority so that the Barara residents can be provided the services.”