Now, cess to keep Bharat Swachh

Panel headed by Chandrababu Naidu proposes 2% cess on waste generators

New Delhi: Now brace up for a new tax - Swachh Bharat Tax in addition to all the taxes you are already paying.A sub-committee on Swachh Bharat headed by N Chandrababu Naidu,

Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, which has made a considerable exercise on waste to energy generation, has incorporated a Swachh Bharat Cess "on all or certain taxable services at the rate of 2 per cent on the value of such taxable services" for financing the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan in its draft recommendations.

The cess or tax will be a two-tier one where one pays tax on all or certain services, including oil and the other to the State for generating waste. The draft recommendations of the sub-committee is also proposing a Swachh Bharat Cess on production of coal, aluminium and iron ore, generation of bio-medical waste so that the proceeds go to the Swachh Bharat Kosh.

A cess on petrol and diesel by State Governments to generate additional resources has also been incorporated. The sub-committee, which is submitting its recommendations to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the next ten days, is also proposing long-term tax-free Swachh Bharat Bonds.

Though it is unclear why, the sub-committee in its very next recommendation suggests that the "waste generator may be charged which may be collected through property tax, water supply or electricity bills, as felt appropriate by the State Governments and urban local bodies based on a "polluter pays principle".

In effect it is a double whammy for citizens. While the Centre imposes a 2 per cent cess on all or certain taxable services, the State Governments end up collecting in addition to the proposed 2 per cent cess on petrol and diesel, a special "waste generation tax". Though the committee is unsure of the total cost of the Abhiyaan,

it could be now assumed that this 2 per cent cess and the waste generation cess are going to be in addition to everything else. In its recommendation No. 4, the sub-committee has added that "innovative financing models like WATSAN model may be followed to generate additional resources for the programme.

Loans are to be provided through Micro Finance Institutions to women for construction of toilets with septic tanks.”That is as far as establishing the infrastructure. Once such a provision is in place, after paying for all these, the Swachh Bharat citizen will have to pay to use public toilets.

The Government would consider introducing monthly tokens or cards for easy and convenient mode of payment for using community toilets, as per the recommendations.

By:W Chandrakanth