Pune: To boost revenue, plug leakages, civic body to restart GIS-based property tax survey

The PMC had launched an amnesty scheme for defaulters with 75 per cent discount in penalties if they pay up by February 11, and 50 per cent discount in the penalties if the payment is made by March 11. “Around Rs 185.57 crore was collected from 86,000 properties that took advantage of the amnesty scheme. This has taken the property tax collection to Rs 981.64 crore,” said Jagtap.

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The PMC had 2.52 lakh defaulters before the amnesty scheme was launched, he said, adding that the scheme would continue for a month and the civic administration is hoping that maximum defaulters take advantage of it.

The agency to be appointed for the GIS survey will have to complete the work within six months. Its responsibilities would include holding citizen awareness programmes in all wards, geo-enabled door to door property assessment survey for 8 lakh properties and for the yet to be assessed properties within PMC limits, Jagtap said.

“The PMC will install QR code for each property and put it within the respective property,” he added.

The additional municipal commissioner said that civic body would connect the civic staff of the property tax department with the private agency carrying out the survey, so that there are no glitches while carrying out the work.

“The survey will use devices with good camera and internet connectivity to achieve the objective of updated data collection on properties. The agency will use a specially designed application for the purpose,” Jagtap said, adding that the PMC may consider appointing more than one agency for the task if need be.

When asked on the result of a similar attempt by the civic body around two years ago, Jagtap said that work is incomplete and will not be used in the present survey.

Meanwhile, the PMC has decided to recover property tax charged on telecommunication towers installed within civic jurisdiction from the owner of the property on which the towers are installed, instead of the existing practice of from telecommunication companies.

“We have started the work on charging property tax from the owner of the property on which the towers are installed,” Jagtap said.

Property owners to pay tax for mobile phone towers 

The Pune Municipal Corporation has decided to recover property tax charged on telecommunication towers installed on properties within civic jurisdiction from the owner of the property, instead of the existing practice of collecting it from telecommunication companies.

“We have started the work on charging property tax from the owner of the property on which the towers are installed,”additional municipal commisioner Rajendra Jagtap said.