Govt to reduce building licence fees, says Karnataka Deputy CM D K Shivakumar

Belagavi: Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar assured the Assembly on Wednesday that the government would reduce various fees levied on home builders in Bengaluru after BJP MLAs expressed concerns over a new bill that has fixed upper limits for such charges.

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike and Certain Other Law (Amendment) Bill was passed in the Assembly, but not before BJP lawmakers from the city flagged provisions made by the government that can burden citizens.

The Bill has been prepared mainly to prevent the BBMP from having to repay Rs 1,712 crore collected from builders towards various fees, including commencement and completion certificates, after the High Court quashed a circular on the basis of which the civic body had levied the charges. The bill also empowers other municipal corporations to collect fees.

Leader of the Opposition R Ashoka, who represents Padmanabhanagar, said the bill has hiked licence fee from 0.18 per cent of the guidance value to 0.30 per cent. "Scrutiny fee is up from 0.09 per cent to 0.10 per cent. Ground rent has gone from 0.09 per cent to 0.25 per cent. The commencement certificate fee has increased from 0.11 per cent to 0.20 per cent. The government has already hiked power tariffs and milk prices,” he said.

Former deputy chief minister Dr CN Ashwath Narayan said various charges account for up to 7 per cent of the cost of constructing a house. “The bill also states that the fees will be multiplied by the proposed built-up area,” he pointed out.

Shivakumar, the Bengaluru City Development minister, tried to convince lawmakers that the government had merely fixed an upper limit for various fees. Ashoka argued that once the upper limit is fixed, officials will levy the highest rate on citizens.

Raja Rajeshwarinagar MLA Munirathna warned that more taxes would drive people away from the city. Rajajinagar MLA S Suresh Kumar also urged the government to reduce the fees. “Building a house is already a costly affair in Bengaluru,” he said.

“I'm assuring you, we'll reduce it. We're working out a scheme to reduce the fees,” Shivakumar said.

Shivakumar said the BBMP issued a circular in 2015 to levy various fees. “Some went to the High Court challenging this. The court quashed it saying a circular won’t do. In 2021, an amendment was made. An ordinance was also promulgated, which had some lacunae," he explained. The civic body has already collected Rs 1,712 crore since 2015. “Another Rs 688 crore has to be collected,” he added.