VMC budget on expected lines

VADODARA: The Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) Rs 4,137 crore budget for 2015-16 in a election year was on expected lines with no hike in tax rates. The civic body however did not go overboard, with promises largely limiting to projects that have been discussed over a period of time. The budget size last year was Rs 3,188 crore.
The budget presented by municipal commissioner Manish Bhardwaj to the VMC standing committee on Saturday did not propose any rise in the tax for residential or commercial properties.But higher tax rate was proposed for buildings and institutions of certain type affiliated to the government, university or local self-government bodies.
"We have taken up doable projects in the budget. The budget size has also increased significantly and we are today close to the Surat Municipal Corporation. The focus has been on roads, water works and drainage. Also, Rs 300 crore will be spent on works related to the Vishwamitri riverfront," said Bhardwaj.
The budget proposed hike in the taxes for schools, kindergartens, colleges, boarding houses, art galleries, museum, libraries, hostels, madrasas as well as training and vocational guidance institutes of central as well as state governments, local self-governments, university or public charitable trusts.
Bhardwaj raised the multiplying factor for calculation of the property tax for these premises from 2 to 2.8. The civic body had imposed significant tax hikes in the 2013-14 on residential properties and raised the factors for calculation on select properties for entertainment, gatherings, sporting facilities, hospitals and some others in the 2014-15 budget.
The 2015-16 budget was devoid of any big ticket development works and was largely peppered with ongoing works or those that the civic body had not been able to take up despite announcing them in the last budget. These include the ring road that was earlier to be made in collaboration with the Vadodara Urban Development Authority. The civic body has also made handsome allocations for augmentation of existing water resources and creating new ones.
Vishwamitri riverfront project finds a special mention in the budget. The civic body has estimated that the riverfront will come up at a project cost of Rs 1,350 crore.
Standing out late in the day
The Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) draft budget was a major departure from the tradition of presenting it in the morning. While senior functionaries said that it was done only to ensure that some possible engagements did not clash with it on Saturday morning, the move has drawn flak for several quarters. The opposition has stated that it was for the first time in the history of the civic body that this had happened.
Water wows
A major feature of the draft budget was the focus on creation of new water sources to cater to the increasing demand of the city. The budget has proposed work amounting to Rs 123 crore at the Rayka French well and Rs 123 crore at the Dodka French well.The budget also promises a new intake facility with water treatment plant and pipelines at Sindhrot at a cost of Rs 100 crore as well as deepening of the Ajwa Reservoir at a cost of Rs 80 crore. An intake arrangement with water treatment plant is also planned on the Narmada canal at Chhani at a cost of Rs 50 crore.
Major Projects
- Ring road at Rs 450 crore
- Convention centre at Rs 50 crore
- New landfill site at Makarpura at Rs 50 crore
- Vadodara eye project for CCTV surveillance at Rs 42 crore
- Railway over-bridge in Manjalpur at Rs 50 crore
- Flyover on road from Fatehpura at Rs 45 crore
- Flyover at Sussen Crossroads at Rs 40 crore
- Storm water drain worth Rs 42.46 crore to divert water from the NH8
- Replacement of sodium fittings on main roads with LED