Tirupati: MCT incurs losses due to non-payment of property tax by government offices

Tirupati: Most of the government officers have not been paying property tax to the Municipal Corporation of Tirupati properly leading to a loss of income to the civic body. Mainly TTD, APSRTC, R & B, Railways, SV University, Mahila University and SV Medical College and SVIMS hospital buildings are in property tax defaulters' list.

For past three years, several lakhs of rupees property taxes were not paid by large number of government offices in Temple city. The municipal officials have decided to issue red notices to the government offices and also to private building owners.

In the present financial year, MCT officials target is to collect 95% property tax from 85,000 assessments across the city including newly merged areas. Two days ago, Commissioner PS Girisha warned the officials to take steps to collect property tax before March 31. He instructed them to issue the notices to tax defaulters. In the back drop municipal revenue officials are planning to issue notices to all the tax payers on or before February 28. And also they are planning to disconnect the water tap connection and drainage connection if anybody fails to pay property tax in time. So far house tax was collected only 60% in the city. To increase the property tax collection, civic body authorities alerted the ward secretaries concerned for issuing demand notices to the tax payers.

Officials identified that many of house owners and cell phone companies with mutual understanding and without permission of Municipal Corporation are maintaining cell phone towers by violating norms. Commissioner directed the planning department officials to demolish the towers with JCBs if they do not respond on MCT notice.