Did you know that three per cent of the property tax you give to the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is supposed to go towards rehabilitation of beggars?
A study conducted by the Rashtrotthan Sankalp Trust (RASTR) on the status of beggars in Karnataka found that the cess is not deposited annually with the Central Relief Committee (CRC), which runs the Beggars' Rehabilitation Centres in the State.
The two-year study, conducted by a team led by Srivathsa K. and Santosh P. Nargund, found there was wide fluctuation in the committee's income. While the amount deposited has not only failed to show a consistent increase, it has actually nosedived by as much as 50 to 90 per cent during short periods.
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Mr. Srivathsa said that the BBMP is the major defaulter among the urban local bodies in the State, as it has several crores in arrears which have to be deposited. According to information available, in 2008-09, the BBMP's tax collection was Rs. 748 crore, of which beggary cess was Rs. 22.44 crore. In 2009-10, the collection was Rs. 797 crore with Rs. 23.91 crore as beggary cess.
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The BBMP was reluctant to part with any information. When questioned, an official said over the past three years, the civic authority had released a total of Rs. 21 crore. This year, the CRC got Rs. 5 crore.
“There is no dearth of funds. The BBMP releases funds whenever the committee asks us,” the official said.
What is owed
When asked to confirm, CRC Secretary S. Krishne Gowda told The Hindu the BBMP owes the committee around Rs. 15 crore.
“The civic authority releases funds whenever we ask. We write to the BBMP five times a year requesting funds for maintenance,” was how he put it. He said that the annual maintenance of the Beggars' Rehabilitation Centre is Rs. 3 crore.