Daily Times

KARACHI: The Dairy and Cattle Farmers Association (D&CFA) has announced to stage a protest demonstration on October 3rd against the imposition of illegal tax collection by District Municipal Corporation (DMC) Malir.

The association has convened a meeting in this regard on Thursday. The collection of milching tax/fee, would be on milching animals and issuance of health clearance certificates to big animals at the entry points of Karachi .

The DMC Malir has been allowed by Sindh Local Government department to collect the said tax and fee in the violation of SLGO 2013, the association claimed.

They said DMC Malir has been collecting this tax for five years; resultantly KMC is deprived of nearly Rs 500 million in this account per annum. President D&CFA Shakir Umer said that KMC had been receiving this tax for last 30 years.

He also said that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Karachi had assigned Jahangir Jawed Memon to probe the misuse of powers by the local government department but the bureau did not take any action in this respect.

He said NAB, anti-Corruption; police and the law enforcement agencies are silent on this issue as “they are getting their share out of this”. It is worth mentioning here that around 9 million animals are being slaughtered in Karachi annually.

Similarly, around 12 million dairy animals are currently in Surjani Town, Bilal Colony Korangi, Super Highway, Madina Colony, Quetta Darbar, and Memon Colony including Al Mumineen Society Gaddap.

The Milching fee was Rs 50 per animal but it was increased to Rs 100 in the second week of September this year. The certificate fee was also increased from Rs 150 to Rs 300 per animal. Yet, he added, vaccination of animals is not being done by the doctors of DMC Malir.

Shakir has requested the governor of Sindh, Sindh Local Government Minister, Sindh Chief Secretary, Corps Commander Karachi, DG Rangers, IG Sindh, Mayor, and Deputy Mayor to take appropriate steps to stop this illegal tax collection by DMC Malir.