The Punjab Local Government Department is set to introduce garbage tax on residential and commercial property in villages across 2,468 union councils in the province.
The responsibility for collecting the taxes will be placed in the hands of sanitary workers and village committees.
This decision comes despite ongoing challenges in collecting garbage tax from large cities. The waste management companies operating in eight districts of Punjab, are tasked with cleaning and disposing of garbage. The Punjab government has provided substantial loans to support the companies but attempts to introduce garbage taxes were successively rejected. Now, the caretaker government has launched the ‘Now villages will shine’ project to provide sanitation facilities in villages at par with the cities.
As part of the ambitious project, a total of 7,404 sanitary workers have been recruited in the 2,468 union councils throughout the province.
Additionally, 12,000 village councils have been formed to ensure successful implementation of the project through cooperation between sanitary workers and local representatives.
According to officials of the department, each union council will employ three permanent workers and three on daily wages.
To facilitate the collection of garbage, motorcycle rickshaws will be rented at a cost of Rs90,000 per month. This will result in a total monthly expenditure of approximately Rs43.19 million, adding up to a yearly budget of Rs5.018 billion.
Under a business plan prepared to fund the project and ensure its sustainability, owners of residential and commercial property in villages will bear the cost through the garbage tax.
The tax includes a monthly fee of Rs50 each for houses, Rs200 for shops, Rs1,000 for petrol pumps, marriage halls and service stations, and Rs2,000 for industrial units. Additionally, a building fee of Rs500 has been set.
The officials to The Express Tribune that the tax collections were projected to yield RsRs335.6 million monthly from all the union councils, amounting to an annual revenue of Rs4.02 billion.
The taxes may be increased over time to cover the project’s expenses.
To ensure the collection of garbage the tax, the lumberdars and patwaris concerned will actively participate in the initiative.
The project is being implemented across various districts, including Lahore, Sialkot, Rahim Yar Khan, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Multan, Rawalpindi, Bahawalpur and Dera Ghazi Khan.
The officials said the initiative was part of a broader effort to provide better sanitation facilities to both urban and rural areas in the province, but its impact, efficiency and revenue generation remained to be proved.
Punjab Local Government Secretary Muhammad Irshad, while speaking to The Express Tribune, expressed confidence regrading the cooperation of village council members and revenue officers for improving sanitation throughout Punjab.
He said all basic aspects of the project, including targets for recruitment of employees and establishment of village councils, had been fulfilled.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 11th, 2023.
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