Despite major challenges posed in property tax collection due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) this financial year fell just slightly short to meet its annual property tax collection target. The civic body collected Rs 5135 crore between April 1, 2020, to March 31, 2021, against the target of Rs 5,200 for this fiscal.
In the previous financial year ending on March 31, 2020, Rs 4161 crores were collected as property tax collection informed Joint Municipal Commissioner (Assessment) Sunil Dhamne. BMC is not able to collect the estimated amount of property tax/ or its annual target. Even another source of income like the development plan department is struggling to meet the target.
According to figures collated till February 2, 2021, the civic body had managed to collect only Rs 1,473 crore as property Tax collection, which increased to Rs 2,002 crores by February 25, 2021. The collection has now jumped to Rs 4563 on Tuesday according to BMC officials, thanks to the tax recovery drive initiated by the property tax and assessment department from March 9. The final figure however reached Rs 5135.43 crore on the last day of the fiscal, March 31, 2021.
The BMC has a total outstanding property tax of close to Rs 20,000 crore to be recovered from various property owners across the city. The BMC had in February 2021 begun attaching the property defaulters for failing to pay property tax. Officials said attachments are part of the BMC’s drive to recover property tax dues from violators. The civic body had taken action against as many as 11,661 defaulters of property tax by initiating the process of attachment of their properties, while the process of auctioning 42 properties has already been initiated, to recover tax arrears of Rs 210 crores.
"Of the total properties attached this year, the highest number - 2,053 properties were attached in H (east) ward (Bandra East, Santacruz). During the tax recovery campaign this year during the last few months water supply connections were disconnected at 479 properties of which 141, the highest number was in T ward," Dhamne added.
In terms of property tax collection and recovery across all wards in the city and eastern suburbs and western suburbs of the BMC, the highest tax collection of Rs 2,545.94 crore was done from wards in the western suburbs, followed by Rs 1,509.52 crore from the city and Rs 1,076 crore in the eastern suburbs.
The highest recovery of tax dues was done from the K-east ward (Andheri east, Jogeshwari) - Rs 540.28 crores
