If all goes as planned, five more parking spaces could be added in the city soon. Awaiting a nod on reconsideration of hike in parking charges from the chief minister’s office, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation is now exploring other options to expand its revenue from the department by adding few more parking lots in its limits.
The KMC is said to have sent a proposal to the Kolkata Police for addition of at least five parking areas under its limits. According to official sources, a nod from the city police is yet to be received.
Notably, earlier in May, the civic body had sent details of a comparative study on parking charges in various mega cities including Delhi and Mumbai. The existing parking fees in Kolkata are the lowest as compared to other metropolitan cities, said sources. The proposal is awaiting a nod from the state secretariat. The KMC, however, left the amount finalization to the authorities without proposing any rate for parking. While awaiting the green signal from the authorities, the KMC is now weighing options and has decided to add a few more spaces into its parking zones.
An online tender also has been floated by the civic body last month. As informed by sources, the tender has been invited for accommodating around 15,000 vehicles in various parking spaces. However, the civic body has made it very clear that those charging extra parking fees from the motorists might have to pay fines between Rs 10-15,000.