Indian Express 18.12.2009
AMC budget focuses on long-term projects
Proposal to hike commercial property tax by Rs 4 per sq metre, residential property tax untouched
With his hands full with identity-enhancing yet incomplete projects like BRTS, riverfront development and water drainage lines, Municipal Commissioner I P Gautam has scaled down the 2010-11 budget to Rs 3,301 crore.
The limited options of raising revenue in view of the elections has only made matters more difficult. Even the administrative wing has come up with tax hike only on commercial properties — from Rs 22 to Rs 26 per sq mt — leaving tax on residential properties unchanged at Rs 10 per sq mt. This is expected to fetch the AMC Rs 50 crore.
To make up for the lost opportunity of higher revenue, Gautam is now depending on the 400 per cent hike in government grant from Rs 25 crore to Rs 100 crore for heritage conservation.
Notably, 35 per cent (Rs 951 crore) of the budget estimate goes for long-term projects under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM).
Though the AMC will complete Phase I of the BRTS project by September 2010, it is proposed to complete another 26 km under Phase II, which will be taken up in 2010-11.
At the budget presentation here on Thursday, Gautam said the long-term infrastructure development projects will gel well with the golden goals set by the state government in the 50th year of its inception.
One of them is construction of 32,640 houses (two rooms and kitchen) for the urban poor at 49 locations under the Slum Networking Project (SNP). Also under considerati
Going beyond giving jobs, the AMC will now set up 20 more urban resource centres where youths will be trained for self-employment. Besides, Rs 50 crore has been allocated for new anganwadis and Rs 63 crore for hospital upgrade.
The non-tax revenue is estimated to go up to Rs 207.33 crore from the present Rs 180.46 crore, while general tax from Rs 332.40 crore to Rs 436.88 crore and revenue grant from Rs 233.91 crore to Rs 257.29 crore.
Standing Committee Chairman Asit Vora, Mayor Kanaji Thakor, Deputy Mayor Dr Kalpanaben Bhatt, BJP AMC leader Dr Kamlesh Patel and Opposition Leader Surendra Baxi were among those present at the session.
Proposals at glance
* Development of Gandhi Ashram, murals and kids park at Kankaria
ASI to be roped in for heritage conservation on are another 43 urban health centres for which Rs 15 has been allocated over and above the Rs 32 crore sanctioned by the government.
* Rs 340 crore for zone-wise budgeting
* Skill development training to 20,000 youths
* 800 new anganwadis
* Rs 25 crore to strengthen fire services
* Rs 1,182 crore for riverfront development project
* Allocation for streetlights doubled to Rs 22 crore
* Free the city from open defecation by December 2010
* 41 new pay-and-use toilets
* 10,000 new individual toilets
* Water supply trunk line of 28.74 km in newly merged areas to provide Narmada water
* Socio, economic and bio-metric survey to issue identity cards to residents of 751 slums
