Pune News : Now, property tax defaulters can avail amnesty scheme benefits

By: Pune Pulse

November 30, 2023

Pune: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) is considering an amnesty scheme for property tax defaulters.

As per the information, there would be a discount on penalties for property tax defaulters. Through Lok Adalat, property owners can take advantage of the scheme’s benefits. According to Vikram Kumar, PMC Commissioner, the municipal government wants to motivate tax defaulters to pay property taxes. The goal of the initiative is to persuade an increasing number of people to come forward and pay the outstanding taxes.

According to municipal data, both residential and commercial property owners must pay back debts totalling approximately Rs 4,500 crore that have been outstanding for more than two to ten years. In the second week of December, a Lok Adalat has been scheduled. Defaulters would be made aware of this by the PMC beforehand.

It is worthy to note that through the amnesty program, the civic body was able to collect Rs 479.09 crore from the owners of 1.49 lakh properties in 2021–2022. However, according to a member of a citizen group, regularly introducing the amnesty scheme will not convey the proper message to conscientious taxpayers. It has been noted that even after benefiting from the program, a large number of tax defaulters still fail to pay their taxes. Therefore, it is not working well as a property tax recovery solution for the long term.

The PMC has set a goal for property tax collection in 2023–2024 of Rs 2318.15 crore.