Don’t be a parking prey

Have you ever got into a heated argument with a parking attendant who demanded much more than the official parking fee fixed by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC)? When you refused to pay the extra amount have you been treated to sinister threats such as you wouldn’t be allowed to park your car in that area the next time?

Well, you are not alone. Car owners in Kolkata are routinely harassed by rogue parking attendants who demand more than the official parking fee. There are those who give in, either because they don’t know the rates very well or because they simply couldn’t be bothered to argue for a few extra bucks. But those who do protest and insist on paying the correct amount often face intimidation and threats.

Take Swati De, who had recently parked her car at the KMC allotted parking area opposite Aminia restaurant on S.N. Banerjee Road. The official fee for keeping the car for under an hour was Rs 7. But the parking attendant demanded Rs 10. When De refused to pay the additional amount, the man not only abused her but also told her that he would “get even with her the next time”. De drove away but she has decided never to park her car there again. “Maybe he took down the car number. What if he damages my car while I keep it parked there,” says a visibly upset De.

It’s not just the common man who is at the receiving end of such harassment. Recently, Debashis Som, a former commissioner of the KMC, was heckled by a parking attendant on Park Street. “I was amazed at the audacity of this person who kept asking for an exorbitant fee, and this despite me having a free parking card! He was so adamant and aggressive that I had to finally seek help from the KMC,” says Som, who now works as the CEO of Bengal Shiram High Tech City. Eventually, he found out that the person was not even an authorised parking attendant. Som went on to lodge a complaint with the Park Street police station.

So are the authorities unaware of the fact that unscrupulous parking attendants regularly bully car owners into paying more than the official fee? Apparently not. Mayor Sovon Chatterjee admits that arbitrary and unjust demands by parking attendants are a growing problem in several parts of Kolkata. “We are aware of the problem. But it will take time to resolve this issue”.

However, KMC officials point out that tackling these unscrupulous parking attendants is difficult because citizens rarely complain about them. “People are so used to the problem that they don’t bother to complain about it. This despite the fact that we have carried insertions in leading dailies about parking fee charts,” says Soumen Moulik, chief manager (advertisement and parking),KMC.

However, filing a complaint against extortionist parking attendants isn’t easy. The general complaint form on the KMC’s website doesn’t even have a section related to car parking issues. So you are left to write to the concerned department of the KMC and, if you have the time and the energy, follow it up by physically going to the municipal office.

Chatterjee advises that if you are being harassed, you should ask for the identity card of the parking attendant, note down the name and employee code, and then write a complaint to the KMC commissioner, the chief manager, parking, or to the mayor himself. “We do take action when we receive a complaint,” he says.

But Moulik is frank enough to admit that the KMC can’t do much against these rogue elements. “Most of the parking attendants are on the payroll of franchisees that get a licence from the KMC to levy parking fees in designated areas. So it’s better to go to the police in case of any wrongdoing,” he says. However, he adds that once a person has been proved to have levied unfair parking charges, the KMC will take up the matter with the franchisee and ask it to take action against him. In extreme cases, the licence to levy parking fees can also be revoked.

So, is going to the police the only remedy you have to protect yourself from unjust demands by parking attendants? “The best way is to first lodge a general diary at the nearest police station and then write a complaint to both the KMC and the traffic police department, mentioning the general diary number,” says deputy commissioner of police (II) D. K. Adak. He maintains that action will surely be taken if a victim of harassment lodges a complaint with the traffic police.

But others feel that going to the police too may be an exercise in futility. “There is often a nexus between local police officers and parking attendants. The stronger the nexus, the bigger is the car parking racket,” says a KMC official who did not wish to be named.

Of course, the first step to protecting yourself from getting fleeced by the parking mafia is to know the official parking rates. It is a fact that the parking rate charts are not displayed in as many places as they should be. “The KMC could take measures to display these rate charts in prominent places, a move that I failed to implement as the commissioner,” says Som.

Those who do not wish to be hoodwinked into paying more can download the rate chart from the KMC website (www.kmcgov.in/KMCPortal/jsp/CarParkingRate.jsp) and keep it in the car for reference. Simply put, the parking rate for four-wheelers (cars) and two-wheelers is a maximum of Rs 7 and Rs 3, respectively, for the first one hour.

Subsequently, an additional charge at half the rate will be levied for every additional 30 minutes. However, one must remember that this rate is applicable only in Category A areas such as Park Street, New Market, Camac Street and others. In Category B (Lake Market, Gariahat Market, College Street, and so on) and in Category C areas (suburbs) the parking rates for cars for the first one hour are Rs 6 and Rs 5, respectively.

So be vigiliant when it comes to paying the parking attendant. And if you are harassed or bullied into paying more than you need to, take a little time to complain to the authorities to bring the culprit to book.


The Telegraph