Civic body collects Rs 133-crore property tax, highest ever so far

In a record of sorts, the Municipal Corporation (MC) has collected over Rs 133-crore property tax during this fiscal 2024-25 so far, which was the highest-ever recovery of levy ever since it was introduced in Ludhiana in 2013-14, officials have said.

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The collection of Rs 133.09 crore made till March 6 was Rs 433.21 lakh more than Rs 128.76-crore property tax collected during the corresponding period in previous financial year 2023-24. Also, this was over 66 per cent of the target to earn Rs 200-crore revenue from the levy this fiscal, officials have confirmed.

Following the failure of defaulters to clear their dues, the civic body has stepped up its ongoing special drive to recover the arrears from the defaulters, who had not cleared their dues despite repeated notices and reminders.

Besides levying penalty and interest, the MC will also resort to attaching and sealing properties of the major defaulters in case they fail to pay the arrears without any further delay.

Taking serious note of the failure of the defaulters to pay the arrears, MC Commissioner Aaditya Dachalwal has ordered recovery and enforcement officials to speed up the recovery of arrears. He has also warned the defaulters of strict action, which could also include attachment/ sealing of properties and penal proceedings.

Dachalwal told The Tribune, here on Friday that the civic body had received a sum of Rs 133.09 crore on account of property tax through 1,61,861 property returns for current fiscal filed from April 1 last to March 6. “It was 66.54 per cent of the amended budgetary provision of Rs 200-crore property tax collection for the current financial year,” he said.

He said as compared to this fiscal’s progress so far, the MC had collected Rs 128.76-crore property tax between April 1, 2023, and March 6, 2024. “It was Rs 4.33-crore less collection, accounting for 3.25 per cent less revenue than property tax collected during the corresponding period this fiscal,” the MC chief revealed.

With this, the MC has created a record of sorts by collecting a sum of over Rs 133.09-crore during the current fiscal so far, which was the highest-ever collection during the corresponding period since 2013-14 when the levy was imposed in Ludhiana.

The MC chief said the civic body has recorded the highest-ever receipts during the current financial year so far since the imposition of the levy in 2013, with almost 1.62-L property owners paying the levy so far across four zones in the MC limits.

According to the year-wise property tax receipts, the MC had collected property tax amounting to Rs 138.03 crore in 2023-24, Rs 122.45 in 2022-23, Rs 92.84 crore in 2021-22, Rs 97.15 crore in 2020-21, Rs 84.25 crore in 2019-20, Rs 78.24 crore in 2018-19, Rs 70.4 crore in 2017-18, Rs 66.05 crore in 2016-17, Rs 69.44 crore in 2015-16, Rs 52.94 crore in 2014-15 and Rs 74.79 crore had been collected from property tax head during the financial year 2013-14.

Pertinently, the MC had collected the revenue of Rs 715.21 crore from different heads during the financial year 2023-24, which was, however, almost 9 per cent more than Rs 658.08 crore revenue receipts recorded in 2022-23. However, the last fiscal’s total revenue was over 18 per cent less than Rs 872.84 crore collection generated in 2021-22 and over 6 per cent less than Rs 764.19 crore total income logged in 2020-21.

Moreover, the overall revenue receipts of 2023-24 had fallen a whopping 23 per cent short of the revised estimates of Rs 927 crore fixed in the Budget for the previous financial year. It was due to a shortfall in collections from five of the total 13 revenue heads in Ludhiana, popularly known as Manchester of India, spread over 169 sq km area with an estimated population of 20 lakh.

4.68-L properties

A total of 4,68,141 properties falling in the municipal limits were assessed to pay the property tax. The MC had been sending reminders to owners of the defaulter property owners through public notices and personal messages on their registered mobile numbers to pay the levy.

What helped

A sustained campaign to collect taxes, motivating residents to pay levies, facilitating collections through online platforms, keeping collection centres open even during public holidays, and last but not the least, issuing stern warning to attach properties and initiate legal proceedings against the defaulters had helped the civic body to achieve the record collections under property tax and other heads in the current financial year 2024-25.

Revenue to boost development, says civic body chief

“Record revenue collections under property tax and other heads in 2024-25 were made possible only due to the voluntary deposits by the residents/ tax payers and hard work by the civic officials concerned to ensure maximum recoveries. The more revenue collections will certainly help more development of the city as a major chunk would be spent on further improving the basic civic amenities being provided to the residents. Those, who have not yet cleared their dues, are again issued notices, failing which stern penal action will be initiated against them,” said Aaditya Dachalwal, MC Commissioner.