Curation Team
HYDERABAD: Soon, you might have to pay more property tax for littering on the roadside, as the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is contemplating this new approach to tackling improper waste disposal on roads and open spaces.
Under a comprehensive challan management system (CCMS), GHMC is planning to integrate the unpaid challans imposed for dumping garbage with Property Tax Identification Numbers (PTNs) to enable collection alongside property tax payments. In the last 45 days, as many as 1,354 challans worth 44.7 lakh were issued for all kinds of littering to residents and commercial establishments.
Although some offenders settle their fines when caught, others refuse payment. To resolve this issue, GHMC plans to incorporate these unsettled penalties into property tax collections.
The CCMS will automatically generate penalties through mobile numbers linked to PTNs. Citizens will have the choice to settle these fines via UPI payment instantly, failing which the amount will be added to their property tax dues for the corresponding financial year.
While sanitation officers and assistant medical officers of health (AMOHs) will receive detailed reports on challan generation, viewing, and monitoring of pending fines, citizens will receive SMS notifications for payments.
Through the CCMS, fines are imposed on 11 different violations, such as littering on roads, lack of bins at commercial establishments, and dumping of construction and demolition waste (C&D waste). All challans under CCMS will have to be settled through online payments.
According to officials, surveillance of garbage disposal activities relies on information from eyewitnesses in the locality. This apart, residents who fail to properly dispose of their household waste are being observed, as they typically discard their refuse at nearby vulnerable spots prone to waste accumulation.
“Special teams have been deployed at garbage vulnerable points to spot people who dispose of trash. These surveillance units will covertly watch these areas and monitor activities to penalise violators. Additionally, we have installed CCTV cameras to identify and pursue individuals involved in illegal dumping practices,” said an official in the GHMC sanitation wing.
