GWMC to launch e-challan system

Warangal: As the ‘cashless economy’ has become the buzzword across the country in financial dealings in the era of post-demonetisation, the GWMC is making great strides towards such an economy.  

The Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation (GWMC) is trying to catch up with the Government of India’s Digital India programme is gearing up to launch e-challan system for the first time, for the use of citizens in making payments to the corporation.

With the e-challan system, the citizens can pay their property tax, water tap connection fee, trade license fee, mutation fee, advertisement fee and several others without visiting the cash counters of the corporation.

The corporations’ Information Technology Department has developed the system and recently made a demonstration for review by Mayor N Narender, Municipal Commissioner Shruti Ojha and other department heads.

 “It is a historic move aiming to ensure ease of payments for the citizens, who can make payments sitting at their homes. It enables maintaining transparency in payments and cashless transactions,” Mayor Narender told The Hans India here on Thursday.

Further, e-challan system will help the GWMC to collect the taxes and fees in a speedy manner as the amount paid is directly credited into the corporations account. It is being planned to set up a helpdesk to educate the public on how to make payments using e-challan system, he said.

We have suggested some options like making property tax clearance a must to obtain trade license and others. After a final verification, the system may possibly be introduced from March 1 onwards, the Mayor 
informed.

Extensive exercise has been carried out to study the banking system for designing the e-challan system. Deliberations have been held with the representatives of the banks for the implementation of the system, the Commissioner Ojha said.

The GWMC IT wing administrator Ramesh Alpula explained that using e-challan system one can pay the taxes through internet banking or through personal banking services of the banks where they have an account. At present many banks are not issuing demand drafts. 

In addition to that it takes some time in realising the payment made through cash cheques and amount from demand drafts credited into the corporation account. All that trouble can be avoided in e-challan system, he noted.

It is planned to conduct orientation programmes for the heads of different government departments on the functioning of the e-challan system. The biggest motivator for digital transactions is the ease of doing these transactions, Ramesh averred.

However, the GWMC authorities decided not to disturb the present system of counters to receive the payments. It may be noted that some time back the corporation has launched ‘Citizen Buddy Mobile App’ to pay taxes, register complaints, grievances and get them resolved.