The haste with which penalty was levied on unauthorised constructions
during property tax assessment of the last financial year has put
Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation(GHMC) in a spot.

After
being flooded with complaints from citizens, the Property Tax wing
recently sent a circular to all zonal offices to reassess the property
and address the grievances of those who had objected to the ‘unfair
penalties’ slapped on them. Though the penalty slabs for unauthorised
construction are 25%, 50% and 100% of the total property tax for minor
to major deviations, the valuation officials had imposed a penalty of
100% in many cases without properly studying the legal status of the
properties.

400 complaints

In Malkajgiri Circle
alone, more than 400 complaints were received in the last one month and
it was found that many of the complainants were right and the penalties
were later reduced.

“Each case is different and various parameters
have to be considered before deciding on a penalty. In some cases, the
first few floors may be authorised but another floor or room might be
illegal.

Some may even take
up unauthorised construction after regularising the property and show
the documents only to fool the officials,” said a senior officer of the
GHMC property tax wing adding that field level officers did not have an
easy task.

Penalty clause

“We are aware that some
buildings which have been constructed before 2013 were penalised 100%
even though the rule says a maximum of only 25% can be levied.
Similarly, the officers in a gated community imposed 100% penalty for
all the houses without verifying the documents. In a month’s time, all
the complaints will be attended to”, the officer said.

Some of the
valuation officers blamed the residents for not showing the documents
when asked, forcing them to impose the maximum fine.

Some of the
owners of old buildings had lost their original documents making it more
complicated to assess the extent of violation, they added.