Mangaluru: Kanara Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) submitted a memorandum to Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) Commissioner Akshy Shridhar with suggestions for certain pressing issues pertaining to the City which need to be attended to on priority. The body has made recommendations for Issuance of Trade Licence, SAS for Industries, Recommendations for Property Tax, and Drainage issues among others in the memorandum submitted by Kanara Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and undersigned by Director/President Shashidhar Pai Maroor.
Recommendations for Issuance of Trade Licence
i) Any Trade License, if not renewed, may be canceled by default after 3 months from the date of expiry after a notice of reminder to this effect is sent to the license holder. The continuation of the Trade License in the name of the previous occupant & requiring the new occupant/property owner to pay backdated Trade License fee is against the principles of natural justice. Trade License is for a particular business and not for the premises. Any liability of delay/penalty etc., should be on the business and not on the premises.
ii) We would also like to suggest that the MCC collect a reasonable Late fee if the Trade License is renewed after the due date (but before the default cancellation date of 3 months).
iii) The MCC may grant an option to Trade License applicants (new or renew) to extend the period beyond 1 year. E.g. 3 years / 5 years / Life-Time. The MCC may seek only data/details annually to update their records.
iv) The MCC may contemplate the exemption from Trade License for Industries under MSME Registration Certificate/ Udyam Registration.
v) We recommend that for new applicants, only Property Tax Paid receipts and Rent Agreement, if applicable, may be sought for processing the application along with the Applicant’s details.
vi) A few Issues are noticed in the MCC portal/mobile app. The MCC may enhance the Website’s performance. Also, details requested like Aadhaar, Father/Spouse’s Name are made mandatory in the new App while these are not applicable for Non-individuals (Company/Firm/Trust). The MCC can rectify these issues suitably.
SAS for Industries
Regularisation of SAS and allotment of KHATA & DOOR NOS. for industries operating within the Baikampady Industrial Area.
i) As you are aware the Baikampady Industrial Area was formed in 1976 and since then Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) has been providing all the civic services like street lighting, roads, storm water drains, water line etc. All the industries have been remitting the Demand Charges for Maintenance to KIADB year on year. Apart from this as per the Act, KIADB is also authorized to give approval to the building plans and this has been enabling ‘ease of doing business’ and facilitating growth of the industries. As on date there are nearly 650 MSMEs that are functioning from the area providing employment to nearly 20000 people including a large number of women in Cashew and other similar industries.
ii) Recently when some of the industry owners approached the Mangaluru City Corporation for Khata for their properties, they were asked to remit the SAS from 2008 even though no services have been provided by the Corporation to the area. This puts a huge burden on all the MSMEs who are already suffering from lack of demand due to various factors like sudden rise in raw material costs, migration of labour and loss of demand and rise in fuel cost due to the pandemic.
iii) Many industries have approached us with representations that they are ready to pay the SAS for the last two years provided they are issued a door number and Khata. This would ensure huge revenue to the City Corporation as well as regular payment of SAS in future and also the extension of civic services from MCC to the Area. Our affiliated body Kanara Industries Association (KIA) has agreed to do a “SAS Payment Drive” in the entire area and ensure that all industries remit SAS from the last two years.
iv) We request you to put up the matter before the Council and get the necessary resolution passed and allot Door numbers and issue Khata to all the industries who pay the SAS dues for the last 2 financial years without any further hindrance.
Recommendations for online payment of Property Tax
i) Once a search is made by Ward Number- Door Number combination, etc in the search result the “View Property Details” button is disabled/not functioning.
ii) If we click the ‘Pay Tax’ button, even if an earlier year’s Tax has been paid for a particular Door Number – Assessment Number combination, it shows status as “Not Paid” in some cases and forces the user to input the details like uploading Payment Challan and Tax paid receipt. This unnecessarily duplicates the work and is difficult, especially for those who are not tech-savvy.
iii) There should be an option to Edit SAS Form after submission but before payment, in case the assessee wants to make any changes. Or Cancel SAS form/Challan option has to be provided. Currently there is no recourse for corrections.
iv) For continued healthy Property Tax collection, offline mode may be continued till the time citizens are familiar with the online portal. Incentives may be given to those who opt for Online portal payment.
v) Last date for Rebate (5%) for early payment may be extended to 31st May 2022 given the portal issues.
Drainage issues
Mangaluru has been facing this drainage issue for many years now. Though a lot of taxpayers money is utilized on improving drainage problems, still people suffer especially during the monsoon. We have seen the city roads being flooded with water. Residents/citizens have shared their difficulties they were facing, to awaken the city officials about their unscientific drainage work. Encroachment on storm water drains and blockage of these drains with garbage and construction debris is another challenge. And in spite of constructing new drains, water is still oozing out of these drains onto the roads, creating havoc for motorists and pedestrians. And it’s always the same spots where flooding takes place, like the one in front of City Centre Mall, on KS Rao road, Kodialguthu Road, Near KMC Attavar, Near State Bank road, Bunder to name a few. Regarding the newly constructed drainage- most of them don’t have a proper beginning and a proper end – as a result, drain water overflows to the streets. Poor planning and poor work, for sure.
Few months ago, at KIADB industrial area in Baikampady, near Lamina Junction, a huge quantity of water (several lakhs of gallons) leaked and was wasted from the mainline due to GAIL pipeline drilling on the roadside for more than two months. This appeared as a story in a Kannada daily newspaper,in which Mangaluru City Corporation said to the reporter that it pertains to KIADB and GAIL Cas Ltd and does not come under MCC. The place where this was dug up has turned into a three feet deep and 12 feet wide pond which is still to be repaired and is causing severe inconvenience to the commuters. When the water is supplied by MCC to the industrial area/estate, then the matter is connected to MCC. MCC needs to take immediate note of this and take appropriate action at the earliest.
Other issues
i) Many street side F&B outlets are encroaching parking spaces of buildings and therefore cars are parked on the road. City needs to ensure roads do not become someone’s private parking lot.
ii)To enforce a ban on plastic bags and single-use of plastic.
iii) To appoint a task force for Beach cleaning.
