Dimapur, Jan. 22 (EMN): The Public Action Committee (PAC) of Naga Council, Dimapur has served a 10-day ultimatum to the Municipal Affairs Department and Dimapur Municipal Council (DMC) to revoke the lease system of check gates.
In a letter addressed to DMC, the committee condemned the government for reintroducing the lease system 2019-2020, stating that it was found out to be one of the main factors that encourage illegal collection of money at the check gates and inside Dimapur city.
“In the light of the Municipal Act that may have clauses to collect fees and taxes, the past and recent administrative approval to collect the same is void of proper streamlining of goods and commodities under GST and without any accountability. There needs to be a transparent system with detail charges to be levied which is not so,” read the letter.
It claimed that the lessee sub-lease to the third party to collect the toll and fees, which gives an opportunity to anti-social elements to interfere and indulge in illegal collection of money.
The PAC also asked why the DMC, which has more than 300 employees, is not taking up the responsibility of collecting money at check gates. It added the “excuse that lessees collect higher revenue than the DMC staff is not justifiable and unreasonable”.
The committee stated that tying up the salary of over-staffed DMC with collection of toll and fees alone at the mercy of public is totally unacceptable. It also said that its “Operation check gate" conducted in 2019 proved that doing away with the lease system reduces the cost of commodities.
‘Therefore, in this regard, the PAC cannot accept the lease system imposed on the people of Dimapur which directly and indirectly affects the whole state,” it wrote.
“A period of 10 days (commencing from dt 20/01/20) is extended to revoke the lease system, failure to comply to the wishes of the citizens, PAC which comprises of all Naga Tribal Hohos and non-local communities, shall take up any drastic action for which the Municipal Affairs Department and DMC shall be held solely responsible,” it added.