SDMC set to hike one-time parking charge, vehicles may cost 2% more

The increase is nominal and need of the hour. We require funds to improve parking facilities. Moreover, there has been no increase in one-time parking charge for decades.

SHIKHA RAI, standing committee chairperson, SDMC

NEW DELHI: Delhiites may soon have to pay more for a new car as the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) is planning to increase the “one-time parking charge” for both commercial and private vehicles.

This may result in consumers having to pay as much as 2% more for their new vehicles.

A one-time parking charge is paid at the time of registration of a new vehicle so the municipality can use it to improve parking spaces in the city.

A senior SDMC official privy to the development said the proposal is likely to be tabled in the standing committee meeting on Friday. If approved, the one-time parking charge for vehicles costing up to ₹4 lakh will increase three-fold — from ₹2,000 currently to ₹6,000.

Similarly, for cars priced between ₹4 lakh and ₹8 lakh, the civic agency will propose to levy ₹10,000 as parking charge; and for vehicles worth above ₹40 lakh, the civic agency proposes to levy ₹75,000. Currently, SDMC charges ₹4,000 as one-time parking charges on all vehicles above ₹4 lakh.

The north and east corporations have yet to take any decision on this matter.

However, this is not the first time the SDMC is trying to hike the charge. Following a similar proposal floated by the north corporation in 2015, the SDMC in 2017 approved a plan to increase the charge by up to 15% of the value of vehicles. “We didn’t implement the proposal because civic agencies did not take prior approval of the urban development department, Delhi government and lieutenant-governor. Unless a proposal is notified by the L-G, we can’t enforce it at all,” said an official from Delhi government’s transport department on the condition of anonymity.

SDMC officials say this time they are determined to see the proposal through. “The increase is nominal and need of the hour. We require funds to improve parking facilities. Moreover, there has been no increase in onetime parking charge for decades,” said Shikha Rai, standing committee chairperson, SDMC.

“During our discussions, we realised the rates proposed oneand-a-half years back were very high. Therefore we want to bring it down. We also feared that people may start buying or registering their vehicles from other NCR towns to avoid the high fee here,” said Prem Shankar Jha, deputy commissioner, remunerative and project cell, SDMC.

Environment experts, however, said that instead of increasing one-time parking charge, civic agencies should impose a “variable parking fee” for usage of public space.

Anumita Roy Chowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy, Centre for Science and Research said, “With roads in the capital getting congested by the day and with limited facilities of parking at its disposal, civic agency should impose ‘variable parking charges’ instead of increasing one time parking charges. Because after paying charges people think that they have got the right to park vehicles on public places for free.”

Sewa Ram, professor at School of Planning and Architect said, “The purpose of increasing parking charges is to earn revenue rather than improving parking infrastructure. In fact, till date civic agencies have been constructing parking lots without proper planning. The multi-level car parking lot in Hauz Khas market is one such example.”