Bengaluru residents to pay more for trash disposal? BJP slams Congress over ‘garbage cess’. All you need to know

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has introduced a "garbage cess," requiring Bengaluru residents to pay a solid waste management user fee starting from April 1.

All about recent hike

Following the recent increases in the costs of milk and electricity, BBMP has decided to impose this new tax. The garbage cess will be charged monthly, with rates varying for different types of establishments, including shops, hotels, and residential buildings. This fee will be collected by the solid waste management company to cover the costs of garbage collection and disposal.

According to BBMP, hotels previously paid ₹5 per kg of garbage. The cess has now been raised to ₹12.

Also Read: Karnataka raises Nandini Milk price by ₹4 per litre, effective April 1

The cess rate is set for residential buildings in the square feet of the building. Buildings ranging upto 600 square feet will have to pay ₹10 per month while buildings ranging from 600 square feet to 1000 square feet will have to pay ₹50.

Building ranging from 1000-2000 square feet will have to pay ₹100 per month while it is ₹150 per month for buildings from 2000-3000 square feet.

₹200 will be collected per month for buildings from 3000-4000 square feet while ₹400 will be collected per month for buildings above 4000 square feet.

BBMP will pay trash tax annually in property tax. The new decision of the BBMP is expected to raise ₹600 crore annually. It has come forward to raise money from various sources to fill the coffers.

Political battle over “garbage cess”

In the meanwhile, Karnataka LoP and BJP MLA R Ashoka slammed for the government for implementing the 'garbage cess'. Hitting out at Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar over this tax, Ashoka questioned if this is being collected to "get the CM's chair".

In a social media post on X, Ashoka wrote, "The government, which failed to dispose of Bengaluru's garbage and turned Silicon City into a garbage city @INCKarnataka has now fixed fees for garbage collection as well. It seems that they have decided to fill their coffers in the name of garbage disposal by promising to make Bangalore City a garbage-free city. DCM @DKShivakumar Sir, they robbed in the name of brand Bangalore, now they loot in the name of garbage too? Is this Bihar election expenditure or a bribe to get the CM's chair?"

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Meanwhile, BJP MP K Sudhakar said, “Karnataka's Congress government is searching every day in what way they can tax the common people...The annual budget has touched the mark of ₹4 lakh crores. In the last 2-3 years, they have been presenting revenue deficit budgets...On the other side, they have increased the price of milk for the 4th time in the last 7-8 months. They have raised power tariffs...And today, it is very surprising; they are additionally levying the garbage cess on middle-class people and poor people…”

Earlier, on March 27, the Karnataka government announced a ₹4 per litre price hike for Nandini milk and curd, effective April 1. This decision was made during a Cabinet meeting led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

The decision was made during a Cabinet meeting held by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. The move aims to encourage dairy farming in the state, considering the cost of milk production and processing.

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Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) Chairman Bheema Naik defended the state government's move to increase the price of Nandini milk by ₹4 per litre, stating that the additional cost would go directly to the farmers.

“We were selling milk in Karnataka at a price lower than that elsewhere in the country. KMF procures 86 lakh-1 crore (milk) every day. 1 litre of milk is sold at ₹42 (Karnataka). In Gujarat, it is ₹53, in Andhra & Telangana, it is ₹58, in Delhi and Maharashtra, it is ₹56, in Kerala, it is ₹54. This decision has been taken in the interest of herders. These 4 Rupees are going to farmers,” he told ANI.

(With inputs from ANI)