Rs 123.26 crore earned as professional tax
Corporation of Chennai
CHENNAI: The Chennai corporation has earned Rs 292.69 crore from property tax collection in the first half of 2015-16. Along with the Rs 123.26 crore earned as professional tax, the local body’s total earnings for the first half year comes to Rs 415.95 crore. This represents an increase of Rs 19.03 crore in total earnings from the previous first half year (2014-15), a press release said.
During the council meet on Wednesday, Mayor Saidai S. Duraisamy had submitted that the corporation had netted only 34 per cent of the first half year target (as per records until August 19, 2015). “The target for the first half year is Rs 514.43 crore,” the Mayor said. Based on the current submission by the corporation, at the end of the first half year, the corporation has managed to net around 81 per cent of its first half year target representing a significant turnaround in fortunes. The city has a total of 11.70 lakh assessees.
As far as property tax is concerned, the civic body was given a target of Rs 600 crore during the budget meet earlier this year. The previous year saw the corporation breach the Rs 500 crore barrier in property tax collections for the first time and the collection was '581.82 crore. Revenue officials said they were well on track to meeting expectations again this year. However, levying of property tax from commercial buildings, like hotels, continue to be an arduous task for them.
But, officials will be cautious now before devising a strategy to collect the dues by shaming the proprietors after last year’s attempt to collect tax using transgenders backfired.
“It was an unfortunate accident,” said an official. “But we will still release list of defaulters to name and shame them in a bid to collect pending dues,” an official noted.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
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