Revised tax structure will increase the tax for residential and commercial building
Kerala Assembly Building
Thiruvananthapuram: Local bodies across the state have run into deep trouble with the state government giving then an ultimatum to implement the revised tax structure – which aims at unifying tax structure at local bodies across the state. With the revised tax structure coming into effect, the residential and commercial building taxes will go up by 25 percent. The plea of the local bodies to revoke its decision has fallen on the deaf ears of the government.
The decision is likely to have an adverse impact on political parties as local body elections are round the corner. Urban Affairs Minister Manjalamkuzhy Ali told DC that the government would not change its decision to hike the tax. A majority of municipalities and corporations have breached the July, 2014 deadline to implement the new tax structure. The state government is planning to implement the tax revision much ahead of the local body election to save political parties from the wrath of the public.
“The local bodies, especially urban municipalities and corporations, are in a deep financial crisis and a hike in taxes will help them improve their own fund. Many corporations are lagging behind in the procedures and we have given an ultimatum to them,” he said. He said that the new government had made the tax revision more lenient. “Nearly two decades have gone by since the government revised the taxes. 25 percent is a reasonable hike and ultimately it’s for the welfare of the public,” said Mr Ali.
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