LAHORE (Kashmir English): The Punjab government has decided to impose a dung tax [Gobar tax] on the dairy sector across the province, Dunya News reported.
According to the reports, the government will impose a tax on buffaloes, under which a dung tax of Rs 30 per buffalo will be collected. In addition to collecting tax, biogas will also be produced from the dung.
Minister for Local Government Zeeshan Rafique said that biogas plants will be set up to utilise the dung produced in gowala colonies.
Under the Suthra Punjab Program, tax will be collected from 168 cattle colonies across the province, including Lahore. A fee will be collected for the cleaning and collection of buffalo waste.
Initially, a tax collection formula has been decided on two Gowala colonies in Lahore, under which a per buffalo dung fee will be collected from the cattle colonies of Harbanspura and Gujjarpura.
The Gowalas have also expressed their willingness to pay the Gobar tax, which was confirmed by the Minister for Local Government Zeeshan Rafique.
“The pilot project in this regard is successfully producing results. The owners in Lahore have also shown their willingness to pay a fee per cattle, which is a welcome thing,” he added.
It should be remembered that the Punjab government had previously started collecting taxes for garbage collection and cleaning from homes under the Suthra Punjab program.
Garbage Tax Rates
Through the scheme, urban families of five marlas will be paying Rs300 monthly, while rural houses of similar size will be paying Rs200.
Houses of five to 10 marlas in cities will be paying Rs500, as opposed to Rs200 in villages. For 10 marla to one kanal homes, the amount is Rs1,000 in cities and Rs400 in villages. Properties between the size of two and four kanals will pay Rs2,000, while properties above four kanals, Rs5,000 will pay Rs5,000. In rural towns, houses above two kanals will pay Rs400.
Urban centers’ small retail stores will be levied Rs500 and Rs300 in villages. Medium-sized retail stores will pay Rs 1,000 in cities and Rs 700 in villages. Large businesses will be levied Rs3,000 in urban areas and Rs2,000 in rural areas of the province.
Throughout the province, the LWMC has begun issuing the garbage tax bills as part of the provincial government’s new initiative.
