Lokmat News Network
Chattrapati Sambhajinagar: It may be noted that property tax and water tax are the backbone of the Chattrapati Sambhajinagar Municipal Corporation's (CSMC) economy. However, the administration has largely overlooked this until now. For the past one and a half years, administrator G Sreekanth has focused on revenue collection, incorporating advanced technology. As a result, in just six months, the collection of property tax and water tax surpassed Rs 100 crore. This year, the administration has set a revenue collection target of Rs 500 crore, which includes previous arrears.
To contribute its financial share to the Smart City Mission, the municipal corporation has taken a loan of Rs 250 crore, which required mortgaging property. Now, the civic body needs an additional loan of Rs 822 crore to put its share in the new water supply scheme (of Rs 2740 crore). More than Rs 300 crore will be needed for investing a share in the drainage project. Currently, the economy is extremely challenging. The accounts department has also been at a standstill for the past two to three months, and nearly all new development work has been put on hold. Various sources of income are being explored to strengthen the economy.
The 7-star scheme encouraged citizens to tax-paying
According to Deputy Commissioner Aparna Thete, “ The citizens were sent SMS on their registered mobile numbers as reminders from April onwards, which encouraged regular taxpayers to pay their dues and avoid interest and penalties. Besides, many property owners paid their taxes to avail of benefits under the Seven Star scheme. From April to September, a total of Rs 101.25 crore was collected through property tax, water tax, and other taxes. It includes Rs 83.25 crore from property tax, Rs 14.04 crore from water tax, and Rs 3.96 crore from other taxes”.
Communication with property owners
A separate digital cell has been established for the collection of property and water taxes, with assistant commissioner Prasad Deshpande appointed as its head. The cell is digital, and the revenue collection from each zone office is displayed on a dashboard. It is now possible to see on a map which properties are taxable and which are not, as well as who has paid and who has not. Officials and staff have been instructed to focus on revenue collection, said Thete mentioning that the civic officials reaching out to property owners to remind them to pay their taxes.