Persistent property ID errors in Karnal MC upset residents

Discrepancies in property IDs within Karnal Municipal Corporation (KMC) limits remain a major issue, causing significant inconvenience to residents. Problems with ownership verification, property transfers and tax assessments persist despite multiple initiatives by authorities to rectify errors.

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Errors in property IDs include name changes, incorrect addresses, mobile number updates, incorrect property size, change in category or use and status updates from unauthorised to authorised. These discrepancies have created roadblocks for residents attempting to sell or purchase properties.

The issue has been raised multiple times in the Haryana Assembly, with Opposition leaders accusing the government of negligence. Protests have been staged demanding a quicker resolution.

According to official data, Karnal had 1.42 lakh property IDs in 2013. A 2019-20 survey by a private company, assigned by the Directorate of Urban Local Bodies Haryana, increased the number to 1,62,222. Following claims and objections, this number further rose to 1,66,584.

In November 2022, KMC uploaded property ID data online for public verification and correction. Since then, over 88,000 complaints have been filed regarding incorrect entries, leaving residents struggling to get them rectified.

Following the online verification initiative, the number of registered properties increased to 1,68,341. Out of the 88,000 complaints, officials have approved 67,000 corrections, rejected nearly 18,000 as invalid, kept 370 objections pending and sent 2,100 cases back to owners for additional documents.

To improve data accuracy and limit unauthorised access, the department has introduced a self-certification process. So far, 36% of property owners have self-certified their details, placing KMC third in Haryana for property self-certification. As many as 57,000 properties out of 1,68,341 have been self-verified by residents.

Despite these efforts, many residents continue to struggle with property ID errors. Yashpal, a local resident, said: "The property ID of my residence was shown as commercial. Despite multiple complaints, the issue remained unresolved for several days."

Bhupinder Kumar, another resident, said, "I had to visit the MC office for months to resolve my property ID issue. Authorities kept asking for additional documents."

Amit Kumar, another resident, said: "I had to raise objections multiple times before my property ID issue was finally resolved."

The Opposition has criticised the government’s handling of the issue, with Congress leader and former Deputy Mayor Manoj Wadhwa slamming the property ID and NDC portal system.

"Flaws in property IDs and the NDC portal have persisted throughout the last tenure. These portals have only caused inconvenience to residents. This system should be removed," said Wadhwa.

Defending the initiative, former Mayor and senior BJP leader Renu Bala Gupta said: "Self-verification is a crucial step to secure property data. To address complaints, we have organised multiple special camps in various wards."