Taxation

NMC to tax cable TV operators

Tuesday, 10 December 2013 12:07 administrator

The Times of India 10.12.2013

NMC to tax cable TV operators

NASHIK: The Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) has decided to levy tax on local cable operators for using its electric poles for laying cable lines in the city.

A proposal in this regard will be tabled at the NMC's next general body meeting. The civic body proposes to charge 50 paisa per day for each electric pole used by cable TV operators. The NMC has installed around 65,000 electric poles in the city.

A senior NMC official said, "The civic body had cut off the TV cables several times, but cable operators would again lay the cables on the poles. So we decided to levy tax on the cable operators."

The official added that the NMC expected to earn Rs 1.17 crore as revenue from the tax. "This money can be spent on maintenance and repair of streetlights," he said.

He further said that it would be mandatory for cable operators to register themselves with the municipal corporation if they wanted to use the poles. After acquiring permission, they will have to pay the tax immediately after the approval of the municipal corporation.

"The NMC will take action against the cable TV operators if they use municipal poles without permission," the official said.

Money from poles

Proposed tax per day per pole: 50 paisa

No of electric poles: 65,000

Expected revenue: Rs 1.17 crore

Property tax: Dhandari Kalan traders to pay Rs 4,500 per sq yard

Thursday, 05 December 2013 12:04 administrator

The Indian Express 05.12.2013

Property tax: Dhandari Kalan traders to pay Rs 4,500 per sq yard

Industrialists having their units in Dhandari Kalan, phase 1-4, will now have to pay property tax at collector rate of Rs 4,500 per square yard instead of Rs 8,200 per square yard.

Members of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) said that the collector rate for all industrial properties in industrial area Dhandari Kalan, phase 1-4, was Rs 4,500 per square yard.

Rahul Ahuja, chairman of CII Ludhiana, said that they even got a stamped document from the Deputy Commissioner's office that in 2012-13, Rs 4,500 was the collector rate while the Municipal Corporation had asked everyone to pay on the basis of Rs 8,200 collector rate which is the price of commercial properties in that area.

Ahuja said that after having the signed document with them, industrialists have been advised to pay property tax as per the collector rate of industrial properties and the commercial sector should pay as per Rs 8,200 per square yard. This would reduce the tax slab for industrial properties, he added.

MC Commissioner Rahul Tewari says that every one can pay tax as per prevailing collector rate and through self- assessment. "In case more tax is paid by someone, we will refund it," he added.

Already Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal had announced exemption of 25% on collector rate to deposit property tax and industrialists were told to pay property tax on 75% of the collector rate. Further, 10% more concession can be availed if the tax is paid till November 30. However, collector rate of Rs 4,500 per square yard is in Dhandari Kalan, phase 1-4, only and the remaining phases 5-8 have no mention in the revenue department.

Ahuja said, "Industrialists in the other phases should follow the same rule because even they have industrial properties. Hence, they must file tax at Rs 4,500 per square yard collector rate only."

Industrialists had asked the CM that they should be given rebate to pay tax on 50% of collector rate, but that demand is still pending.

335 Tax Defaulters Owe BBMP Rs 316 Crore

Thursday, 05 December 2013 07:57 administrator

The New Indian Express 05.12.2013

Over 60 per cent of the property tax dues that the BBMP is struggling to collect is from just five per cent of major tax defaulters. Out of Rs 595.63 crore dues, Rs 316 crore has to be paid by 335 property owners. That is close to a whooping Rs 1 crore for each property.

BBMP has categorised defaulters into six categories based on the amount they have to pay, and has identified 12,104 property owners as defaulters who have not paid Rs 595.63 crore tax.

Of this, Rs 316.19 crore is from 335 defaulters, while 11,769 defaulters have to pay the remaining Rs 279.44 crore, according to the data compiled by the BBMP.

In the current financial year, the BBMP has collected Rs 1,074 crore taxes against the total tax collection target of Rs 1,600. In 2012-13, the total tax collected was Rs 1,358 crore.

Explaining the problems faced by them in collecting taxes, a BBMP official said in some cases tax inspectors and other revenue officers were not allowed to enter the premises, especially if it was an IT-BT company, on the pretext of security.

“In some cases, our officials are hand-in-glove with the companies. In fact, we had transferred some of the tax inspectors who are working in the same ward for many years, as we feel by working in the same place, they will develop vested interests,” official said.

According to the Chairman, BBMP Taxation and Finance Committee, M S Shivaprasad, officials are not doing their duty. “It is the officials responsibility to collect taxes. We are councillors and do not have executive powers. We can only direct them. Now that we have given a target of Rs 5 crore per-zone-per-week, officials have to meet the target, failing which action will be initiated against them.”

“I have asked the concerned officials to email day-to-day reports of collections,” he said.

On defaulters, Shivaprasad said BBMP authorities were making a list of defaulters in a zone-wise breakup. The Palike is planning to upload them on its website. “We will take legal action against defaulters, either we will attach their rent (if they have any tenants) or confiscate movable properties,” he said.

On the recent showdown of the BBMP with Wipro, which is one among the major defaulters and has to pay Rs 16.47 crore, Shivaprasad said they wanted to confiscate its movable properties.

Most Defaulters in East Zone

BBMP’s east zone has the most number of defaulters. Of 7,601 defaulters (excluding the Rs 25,000 to Rs 50,000 category), 2,180 are from the east zone.

Even among major defaulters, of 335 defaulters who have to pay Rs 316.19 crore, 97 are from the East, and owe dues amounting to Rs 109.52 crore.

Property tax collection gains momentum, over Rs. 6.5 crore in MC's kitty

Wednesday, 04 December 2013 00:00 administrator

Hindustan Times 04.12.2013

Property tax collection gains momentum, over Rs. 6.5 crore in MC's kitty

After facing flak from the business community in the beginning, the collection of property tax has eventually gained momentum with the municipal corporation authorities having received more than 20,000 applications in the past 20 days and collected over Rs. 6.5 crore since its implementation on September 20.

According to information, nearly 25,000 tax payers, both common people and commercial unit owners, have already paid their tax.

However, the MC has received only 1,250 applications from residential establishments till November 14.

Indeed, the income generated from property tax will remain one of the main revenue sources for the civic body in future and has been expecting to collect Rs. 20-25 crore per annum through property tax against the house tax collection of Rs. 10-14 crore earlier. Now house tax has been abolished after the implementation of property tax.

Apart from extensive awareness campaigns exhorting people to deposit their tax, a 10% discount scheme on the payment of tax has also turned out to be a lucky freebie for the MC and better repose from taxpayers.

Pertinently, owners of commercial establishments were, in the beginning, reluctant to pay the tax and had observed a complete shutdown here on November 26 to register their protest.

One of the senior MC officials said that they were yet to carry out bifurcation of exact numbers of commercial and residential units which have paid tax.
He said, "Big branded commercial units and owners of residential establishments are showing keen interest in paying their tax, while local commercial traders are still reluctant to pay tax. Fearing stricter action, only small shopkeepers have so far come forward to pay the tax".

Mayor Amarinder Bajaj said though people were willing to pay tax following important changes in tax slabs but commercial unit owners are unnecessarily creating confusion over it.

"Under new slabs, commercial unit owners have to pay less tax than that of house tax but they have failed to understand it so far. The awareness teams have been asked to hold camps in commercial areas to make shopkeepers aware of it and assist them in assessing their property tax", he said.

Only 60 pc property tax collected in BBMP east zone

Tuesday, 03 December 2013 11:04 administrator

Deccan Herald 03.12.2013

Only 60 pc property tax collected in BBMP east zone

Transport and District In-charge Minister Ramalinga Reddy on Monday ordered the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to issue show cause notices to 12 Assistant Revenue Officers (AROs) for not collecting property tax from the east zone regularly.

Reddy, who chaired a meeting to review revenue collection, was furious with AROs of the east zone. He made them stand on their feet and demanded an explanation for their “failure” to generate revenue. The minister was angry that 40 per cent of the property tax in the east zone was yet to collected.

The target was Rs 468 crore, but only Rs 287 crore have been collected, he pointed out.

He directed the officers to submit compliance reports about tax collection in the next meeting on January 2. They should also explain the reasons for their “inefficiency”, he said.

BBMP Commissioner Lakshminarayana and Mayor B S Satyanarayana also took the officers to task for their inability to collect the property tax.

“During the last three months, the officers were repeatedly told to collect the tax regularly but not a single person took the instruction seriously. From now on, each one of you (AROs) should collect property tax from 25 houses everyday,” said the mayor.

The officers have been instructed to collect the remaining amount of Rs 181 crore within a month.

Other decisions taken at the meeting include the issuance of Property Identification (PID) numbers to the upcoming new 18,500 properties in the east zone within a month, revaluation of properties built on more than 3,000 sq ft and issuance of notices to property owners who owe more than Rs 50,000.

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