Ponda: After a three-year long agitation with the PMC including court cases on the controversial Sopo hike, Ponda market vendors today agreed to the reduced rates of sopo taxes for the last three years which is outstanding against their names.
The meeting was held in Ponda MLA Ravi Naik office which was held between vendors and the Chief Officer Navnath Naik. Both parties agreed to settle the controversy and to also withdraw several court cases against each other by cooperating with each other henceforth.
It may be recalled that since 2014-15 there were agitations by market vendors in protest against the sopo hike by PMC claiming that it hiked the Sopo almost four times from Rs 5 to Rs 20. The matter went to High Court. Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar at that time intervened and reduced the rates to Rs 12 per square metres which did not satisfy the vendors who continued their fight including court cases which are still pending in the Court.
Recently PMC lowered the Sopo rates from Rs 12 to Rs 7 per square metre for the year 2014-15, Rs 8 for 2015-16, Rs 9 for 2016-17 and Rs 10 hike for 2017-18.
