DIMAPUR, JUNE 1 (MExN): Several Dimapur based civil society organizations today issued a joint statement re-affirming their position that collection of toll tax should not be leased out to any private party/middleman at any cost.
The statement appended by the Naga Council Dimapur, DUCCF, Naga Women Hoho Dimapur, Business Association of Nagas, Muslim Council Dimapur, DCCI, Dimapur Bengali Samaj and the GBs Union Dimapur claimed that with toll tax collection being done by the DMC, the town “has seen visible development and facelift in the maintenance of roads, drainage, designated dustbins, culvert and overall improvement in sanitation.”
It further informed that the DMC has “enough manpower under its payroll to collect toll tax and therefore the question of public paying commission to a middleman to collect toll tax is not only unjustified, unacceptable but ridiculous.”
The civil society organizations also reminded that considering recent turmoil regarding the ULB issue, “the civil society is in no mood to confront the government on toll tax issue.”
“Any attempt to lease out toll tax to a private party will be seen by the civil society as nothing but a vested interest of certain individual above department and welfare of the public and therefore anti-people and development.”
They reminded the DMC, Municipal Affairs Department and the Nagaland State Government that any attempt to lease out toll tax will “face non cooperation from the civil society and business community who are the stakeholders.”
