Hyderabad: Living in cities is going to get much more expensive with the Telangana government poised to raise property tax in all urban local bodies from April 1, 2017.
Citizens living within the jurisdiction of urban local bodies, including Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) will have to pay five per cent more in property tax from April 1.
The state’s municipal administration and urban development department has sent the file to municipal minister K.T. Rama Rao. After he approves it, the file will be sent to Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao and then to the Cabinet for final approval.
In addition, the TS government is going to amend the Telangana Munici-palities Act and the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Act to include a provision for enhancement of property tax by five per cent every year.
The state has 73 municipalities and six municipal corporations — Hyderabad, Karimnagar, Ramagundam, Khammam, Nizamabad and Warangal.
The proposal to amend the relevant Acts to ensure five per cent increase every year from 2014-15 had been mooted in the undivided AP state, but the current AP government has not issued orders in this regard. The central government too has directed annual increases in property tax in all urban local bodies under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation.
Property tax is one of the main sources of revenue for urban local bodies. Property tax is assessed for each property based on the annual rental value and the taxation rate.
