Indian Express 06.01.2010
Link property tax payment to voter IDs: Oppn Cong in civic body
Leaders of the opposition Congress in The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on Tuesday dismissed the Corporation’s revised budget for 2009-10 and budget estimates for 2010-11, saying it “lacked far-sightedness”.
Initiating a debate on the budget presented in December 2009 by Municipal Commissioner K S Mehra, Leader of the Opposition Jai Kishan Sharma said the budget also lacked effective revenue-generating mechanisms.
Sharma suggested the MCD should increase its property tax collection net and rope in 70 per cent of the current non-payers by linking the mechanism to voter ID cards. “We can identify the properties on the basis of voter ID cards,” he said.
“The Central government has transferred 15,000 custodian properties in 1947. The MCD is spending a huge amount on their maintenance, but earning nothing. We should consider the transfer of ownership rights on a long-term lease basis. It will bring in revenue that could be invested on public welfare schemes,” he added. Congress members also alleged that while the MCD had projected Rs 3,259 crore as an estimate of actual income during 2007-08 and Rs 3,166 crores during 2008-09, it doubled the estimate to Rs 5,843 crore in 2009-10.
