NMMC uses drumbeats to shame tax evaders, Rs 495 cr collected
The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) is making all efforts to meet the target of property tax collection, with just two days left in the financial year 2021-22. The civic body is now using drum beaters to shame tax evaders, with a shortfall of around 20 per cent of its annual target.
As per the property tax department of NMMC, till Tuesday morning, the civic body had already collected Rs 495 crore, while the target for the financial year is Rs 600 crore.
The additional commissioner of NMMC, Sujata Dhole said that it's very unfortunate that despite so many reminders and rebates on interest for delayed payment, many of the big property tax defaulters are not showing interest. “There is a need that common people should also know who are not paying property tax in the city,” said Dhole, adding that the property tax collected is used for the city's development and maintenance of infrastructure.
Earlier, the civic body had issued notices to 299 property tax holders to pay their pending taxes by March 31, 2022, or be ready to face action. Around Rs 22 crore of property tax is pending with these 299 defaulters.
The civic body collects the majority of its annual property tax from industries and commercial units. As the state government has already decided to waive off property tax for residential units up to 500 sq ft, the civic body is focusing on industrial units.
According to the civic body, small and medium enterprises in the TTC industrial area are not willing to pay even the principal amount, despite the civic body offering rebates on interest due to delayed payments. The arrears for the last fifteen years from several industrial units have now mounted to around Rs 2,300 crore.
The civic body will get GST reimbursement of Rs 13001400 crore from the state government. After GST, property tax is another major source of revenue and the corporation is putting effort into income generation. The civic body has set a target of Rs 800 crore for the next financial year.