VMC panel clears 7,672cr budget, rejects service charge hikes

Vadodara: The standing committee of the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) on Saturday cleared a Rs 7,672 crore budget for 2026–27 and forwarded it to the general board, rejecting all proposed hikes in service charges and administrative fees.The VMC administration had proposed steep increases in service charges, administrative fees and other levies to generate additional revenue, even as taxes were left unchanged. After three days of deliberations, the standing committee struck down all the proposed hikes.VMC commissioner Arun Mahesh Babu had presented a budget of Rs 7,609 crore, which the standing committee increased to Rs 7,672 crore. The committee cut allocations for the flower show by Rs 9.99 crore and recruitment tests and examinations by Rs 3.5 crore, while raising expenditure on pavements and related works by Rs 20 lakh.The committee projected higher revenue from administrative penalties for littering and similar violations at the ward level, rents from shops and cabins, plumber licence fees, sale of treated wastewater, and gentry gate advertisements. It also included Rs 12 crore as the state govt's contribution to the city bus service.Allocations for employee welfare, including rewards and accident compensation, were increased. The committee also raised spending on festival illumination, electricity for streetlights, stray animal nuisance control, and key roads, including town planning scheme roads.