The Indian Express 24.09.2013
MC: Pay property tax from September 27 onwards
After much dilly-dallying, get ready to pay property tax from September 27 onwards.
With the ordinance for the amendment to the Punjab Municipal Act,
1911, and the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, getting a nod
from the Punjab Governor, the property tax is all set to make people pay
for living in their own homes.
Not only the construction on a property will add to the tax but
also the people who pay tax after the time prescribed by the MC will
have to witness auction of their properties.
As per rules formed by the government, everybody owning either a
residential home, commercial property or even a vacant plot has to pay
property tax because they own a property.
However, residents feel that it is nothing less than
dictatorship. Pradip Mehta, a resident of Model Town, said, “What is the
meaning of this tax after paying water and sewerage bills? Let MC do
what they want but I will not pay.”
“Is it anything less than dictatorship to pay for owing a
property? Why only tax from property owners?” questioned Ramesh Singal
from Aggar Nagar.
HDFC teams
AT a crucial meeting of MC, headed by MC Commissioner
Rahul Tewari and Mayor Harcharan Singh Gohalwaria, additional
commissioners, zonal commissioners, superintendents and other staff
members who will be involved in collection of property tax from
September 27 onwards were given strict orders to recover maximum tax by
October 31.
While the MC has set a target of collecting at least Rs
200 crore by the end of this financial year, it has roped in teams of
HDFC Bank which will help MC in recovering the tax and spreading
awareness. Also, tax money will be kept in HDFC accounts. “HDFC teams
are our partners in this mission and they will be visiting from block to
block to help us recover tax,” Mayor Gohalwaria told Ludhiana Newsline.
Self-assessment
The formula adopted by the government is of
self-assessment. According to this, people themselves will fill out
proformas which are expected to be available at MC offices, suvidha
kenders, online and at sub-zonal offices. They will be required to write
details like area of their property and construction done, and submit
forms along with tax as per self-assessment.
“Till October 31, 10% rebate will be given to encourage
people to pay tax. Then till December this year, there will be no rebate
and in quarter following December, a penalty of 25% will be imposed on
those who will not pay tax and then finally last resort will be
auctioning the property,” said Gohalwaria, adding that “tax is very
citizen-friendly and no one should have a problem in paying such nominal
amount”.
Wrong information
Asked how MC will come to know if residents file
wrong information, Gohalwaria did not have a clear view and said that a
“detailed copy of rules is yet to be received from government”. He added
that “MC may inspect and cross- verify forms of residents randomly, not
all, and then penalty might be imposed”.
How to calculate?
Houses of up to 50 square yards = Rs 50 per year
Houses between 50 and 100 sq = Rs 150
For houses with an area of 500 square yards
or more, payment is to be calculated at a rate of one per cent of the
annual value. For vacant plots and unutilised buildings and plots, tax
will be 0.2 per cent of the annual value.
Total value will be calculated by adding
collector rate to the construction cost (Rs 500 per square foot on
covered area) to arrive at its total value and then deducting 10 per
cent as depreciation charges for residential houses. Thereafter, five
per cent of the total value of the property will be taken as the annual
value of the property on which the tax will be calculated.
For houses between 100 and 500 square yards, the tax will be charged at a rate of 0.5 per cent of the annual value.
