He said people who brought in animals on vehicles would have to pay Rs 100 per animal at the border. When asked if a person would also be charged if he brought in his pet dog, Singhal replied in the affirmative. He soon retracted saying anyone transporting more than two dogs into the capital for commercial purpose would have to pay a licence fee.

"This licence fee may be collected by the agency collecting toll tax,'' he added.

Leader of opposition J K Sharma, however, raised a pertinent question: ``A person can easily herd his cattle into the city instead of transporting them in vehicles. What will the MCD do in such cases?''

The civic agency has also proposed new taxes, including a 5% annual tax on private discoms supplying power to Delhi. There is also a plan to consider the properties of Delhi Jal Board (DJB) and the discoms as commercial properties and to charge Rs 10 per KW from commercial properties using generators. "We are also planning to charge an annual rent from companies that carry out ducting or installing other equipment on municipal land,'' said Singhal.

Banquet halls, farmhouses, community halls, etc will also have to pay an annual registration fee ranging between Rs 20,000 and Rs 1 lakh depending on their capacities. Said Singhal, ``The charges will account for the expenses that the civic body has to incur while cleaning up a place after every marriage function. The high court has also given us the permission to charge Rs 10,000 per marriage from farmhouse owners and we are looking into the matter. We will also levy Rs 5,000 as sanitation charges on banquet, community halls, etc.''

MCD claims that the new taxes have been proposed to generate additional revenue and to help balance the burden imposed on it by the Sixth Pay Commission.