CTC mall parking charging arbitrary parking fees; fined Rs. 50K

Hyderabad: The parking staff at CTC mall in Hyderabad were found collecting parking fees without checking the bill/receipt provided to customers. Social activist Vijay Gopal raised concerns about the issue after which the Enforcement, Vigilance, and Disaster Management (EVDM) of Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) issued an e-challan levying Rs. 50,000 fine against the parking space authorities.

"It didn't matter if people had a receipt or if they came back within the hour. The parking management was collecting Rs. 20 from everyone," Vijay Gopal said.

The EVDM, in the challan, said as per GO 63, the government had issued "Policy on Parking" to address various issues related to parking, including planning, development, operation, management, and regulating the collection of parking fees. Also, as per the Building Rules GO no. 168, an adequate number of off-street parking spaces have to be provided by the owners of commercial establishments/malls/multiplexes to meet the demand generated by their employees and visitors.

"The problem arises when apartment and mall owners lease the parking areas which is strictly prohibited under section 24 of the TS Apartments Act 1987. So, after taking the lease, the contractor has to make up for the money invested, so they break the law by not checking the receipts and simply collecting money from everyone," Vijay said.

He added, "Despite bringing this to the notice of EVDM, only parking management was fined. I think the EVDM should impose a fine of Rs. 50,000 on the owner for leasing the space and letting the contractors harass the consumers." Vijay also said that roughly around 10,000 people visit the parking facility everday. The owner also confirmed to him that he has leased the area for Rs 50,000

Parking fee regulations

GO 63 was issued in 2018 by the Telangana government to rationalise and regulate the parking fee collected by commercial establishments. As per the order, no parking fee can be collected from any person for the first 30 minutes. For those who are parking their vehicle between 30 minutes to an hour, there will be no fee if the person who parked the vehicle can produce a bill or proof of having shopped in a mall or multiplex. For the rest, the prescribed parking fee will be collected.

For people who park their vehicles for over an hour, no fee will be levied if the person can produce a bill/movie ticket for an amount that is more than the parking fee being charged for the said duration. Others will have to pay a fee, as prescribed.