BENGALURU: It is widely accepted that there is a need for general transfers within BBMP during the months of April and May to ensure that officials do not stick to a single post for long, Mayor B. N. Manjunath Reddy urged City Development Minister K. J. George on Friday.
Taking part in the revenue review meeting held at the IPP by the minister, Mr. Reddy said that several officials have been functioning in the revenue department for over five years.
There are complaints of these officials conniving with the property owners to reduce the property tax to be paid, thereby inflicting a loss of revenue on the BBMP.
Mr. Reddy urged the minister to stir things up and initiate general transfers during April and May. Further, he felt that since the deputy commissioners in the zones have no work, these posts can be scrapped. With March 31 being the last day for property tax collection, the BBMP revenue authorities must pull up their socks to meet their targets, otherwise they would have to face the music, warned Bengauru City Development Minister K. J. George on Friday. During a review meeting on the property tax collection at the IPP centre, he said that with the target for the current fiscal 2015-16 being '2,400 crore, there is still a shortfall of '505 crore and it should be achieved.
Special Commissioner (Revenue) V. Rashmi Mahesh made a power point presentation on the property tax collection and tax collection so far. For the year 2014-15 the BBMP had a target of '2,900 crore but could earn only '1,810 crore. For the current fiscal the BBMP has collected '1,790 crore and all the revenue officials have been directed to meet the target, she said. Mr. George said that hundreds of commercial complexes are mushrooming in Mahadevapura, Dasarahalli and Bommanahalli zones. The property tax should also be collected correspondingly. But, it appears that there is a lapse on the part of the revenue officials in mopping up property tax collections. The officials who exhibit laxity in tax collection will be taken to task during a review meeting that will be convened in the first week of April, said Mr. George.
Since the BBMP is struggling to bring all the properties under the tax net, the minister directed BBMP commissioner G. Kumar Naik to depute an efficient employee to the IT wing.
This is what we want: Residents to BBMP chief
Bengalureans fed up with potholed roads and garbage in their streets and hoping for a solution for both in the coming BBMP Budget, got the opportunity to speak to the big man himself, BBMP commissioner, G. Kumar Naik on Friday. Mr Naik had to field a volley of questions like “Why are people not consulted before developmental projects are implemented in their areas?” “Why are roads, underground drainage and drinking water not provided in some localities?” and Why is the health sector getting a raw deal in the BBMP budget? from both ordinary people and members of the Residents’ Welfare Associations (RWA), who got the opportunity thanks to Janaagraha’s “My City, My Budget” campaign. Launched in November last year, the campaign is supposed to help Bengalureans give their inputs for the BBMP Budget
2016-17. A student, Aneesa, wanted to know how much was spent on garbage processing and how much more would be spent for effective disposal of the rubbish in the city. Mr. Naik patiently informed her that seven waste processing plants had been set up at a cost of over '200 crore and the BBMP was spending about '650 crore per annum on solid waste management.
Asked about property tax collection, he advised people to pay it honestly under the Self Assessment Scheme (SAS).
