KMC headquarters
Under the scheme, a defaulter (govt, residential) can apply for waiver of interest on the unpaid amount from Oct 9. If a defaulter applies for such waiver and pays the full outstanding amount by March 31, he/she will be entitled to a 100% waiver on interest on the unpaid amount. KMC will also allow a 99% penalty waiver. In case of mixed-use properties (partly commercial and partly residential), the civic body will offer an 80% interest waiver, and the owners of the buildings that are being totally used for commercial purposes will be entitled to a 70% interest waiver, said the KMC administrator and municipal commissioner Smita Pandey on Thursday.
Kolkata: Kolkata Municipal Corporation will roll out a new interest waiver scheme on property tax from Friday.
The KMC assessment department is likely to continue with the waiver scheme even after the first deadline (March 31) expires, but the interest waiver will come down significantly, said a KMC revenue department official. “We need at least Rs 500-600 crore to clear dues to contractors and keep essential services operational. Out of desperation to compensate for the loss of property tax revenue during a prolonged period, partly because of the state elections and partly due to a recent glitch in the IT server, the revenue collection from property tax has been at an all-time low in the past six months, according to a KMC revenue department official.
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The desperation to mop up revenue for clearing dues to contractors and keeping up the essential services intact necessitated the introduction of the new waiver scheme, according to a KMC official. The decision to offer a total waiver of interest on property tax dues may encourage the defaulters to avail the rare opportunity in time and thus we may mop up additional revenue from a section of defaulters apart from getting taxes from property owners who pay regularly,” a KMC assessment-collection department official told TOI. Download the TOI App.
The municipal commissioner on Thursday said besides making online payment, the applicants can also visit KMC’s assessment-collection department offices and pay the outstanding amount physically.
The municipal commissioner said KMC had fixed a target of mopping up Rs 884 crore from the waiver scheme by next March. The civic body is owed Rs 6,854.29 crore by 3.9 lakh property tax defaulters, according to a KMC estimate. Of the outstanding amount, Rs 3,138.8 crore happens to be the principal amount which has been unpaid.