It's official: BBMP to levy fee for lifting household waste

Bengaluru: After the Karnataka government raised the price of milk, power tariff and bus and Metro fares, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has added to the financial burden by imposing a user fee for solid waste management (SWM) services.

Starting April 1, the new fee will apply to all domestic waste generators in the city.

The fee structure includes six different slabs: Buildings of up to 600 sq ft built-up area will pay Rs 10 a month, while buildings larger than 4,000 sq ft will pay Rs 400 a month. For example, a three-storey building on a 30x40 sq ft site would incur a monthly fee of about Rs 150. This is in addition to the SWM cess that the property owners already pay, presumably for the upkeep of public places.

While the move is expected to fetch an additional Rs 750 crore in revenue, it places a significant financial strain on ordinary citizens. It will be levied for collecting household waste and its ‘scientific’ disposal.

During the budget presentation on Saturday, BBMP special commissioner (Finance), Dr Harish Kumar P, announced that the civic body plans to collect the solid waste management user fee alongside property tax starting from 2025-26.

This is the first time the BBMP has officially disclosed the imposition of user fee for solid waste management even as the Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Ltd (BSWML) — a subsidiary of the BBMP — was working on securing government approval for the fee for quite some time. 

While the budget did not provide extensive details on the user fee, it is learnt that citizens may be allowed to pay property taxes in two installments.

Last November, BSWML had proposed the user fee, citing the Solid Waste Management Rules of 2016 and various court orders. About four months later, the Urban Development Department (UDD) -- which reports to Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar -- approved the proposal, which was kept under wraps.

Speaking to reporters, BBMP chief commissioner Tushar Girinath said the allocation to BSWML has been increased to Rs 1,400 crore. “We hope to generate at least Rs 750 crore from the user fee. The remaining amount will be provided to BSWML from our other revenue sources,” he said, adding the BSWML previously received Rs 1,085 crore from the BBMP.

In response to the user fee, the Bengaluru NavaNirmana Party (BNP) argued that addressing existing inefficiencies in the utilisation of the current Rs 1,000 crore budget would negate the need for an additional fee.

“BBMP has abundant funds. Before considering a user fee, it must justify why the existing budget is insufficient. Where is the money going? Why is there no audit or public disclosure of
SWM expenditures?” asked Poongothai Paramasivam, Governing Council Member of BNP.

“Citizens already pay property tax, which includes an SWM cess. It is important to note that while Swachh Survekshan allows urban local bodies to collect a user fee, it is not mandatory.”