Civic Agency Will Table Proposal At January 31 Meeting New Delhi: The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) is all set to increase surface level parking rates in areas under its jurisdiction. The civic agency is planning to implement the rates that were discussed in a special meeting chaired by Delhi government chief secretary in October last year. A proposal is likely to be tabled in the council’s meeting on January 31. NDMC chairperson Archna Arora confirmed that the civic agency is working on a new tariff structure. “We are going to increase the surface level parking rates in NDMC areas. We are preparing a proposal which in all probability will be tabled in the forthcoming council meeting,’’ said Arora, who refused to divulge the tariff details. The civic agency has been mulling an increase in parking rates for a long time, but has not been able to finalize it. The NDMC has decided to prepare a proposal based on the tariff discussed in Delhi high court appointed special task force (STF) meeting in October last year. “We have started work on the proposal for hike in parking rates. The rates are going to be almost the double of the existing rates. We are taking the rates discussed in the STF meeting last year as the base,’’ said a senior official. In the STF meeting, there was proposal to increase the surface level parking rates from Rs 10 for entire day to Rs 10-15 for half-hour, Rs 20 for one hour, Rs 50 for three hours, Rs 100-150 for six hours and exponential increase in rates for subsequent hours. Though the rates have not been finalized, all agencies were in favour of an increase in parking rates. Sources say that one reason why the NDMC is planning to increase the surface level rates is to promote its multilevel parking projects. “People will use multilevel parking only when the rate of surface level parking is increased. Also, this will encourage people to use public transport,’’ said an official. The NDMC has two automated multilevel parkings in Sarojini Nagar and Baba Kharak Singh Marg, which is not being utilized properly. While DLF, the private concessionaire, wants the civic agency to help in promoting the parking, NDMC has made it clear that it is DLF’s responsibility to promote it. “We will gradually close the surface level parking around Hanuman Mandir. But DLF has to promote the parking,’’ said Arora. Meanwhile, the NDMC’s multilevel parking project at Khan Market and Kali Bari Marg, which was proposed in last year’s budget, are both stuck as the civic agency is yet to get the land. And the much talked about KG Marg parking project is yet to get clearance from National Monument Authority. With the civic agency determined to hike the surface level parking rate, most of the multilevel parking projects are stuck.