BMC expects to miss property tax collection target in 2023-24 by Rs 1500 crore

Property tax is the second-highest revenue source after grant-in-aid on account of compensation in lieu of Octroi.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation on Friday revised its collection target for property tax in FY 2023-24 to Rs 4,500 crore from Rs 6,000 crore. The municipal body on Friday presented a Rs 59,954.75 crore budget for FY24-25.

"In the financial year 2023-24, revenue from property tax was estimated at Rs 6,000 crore which is revised to Rs 4,500 crore, a fall by Rs 1,500 crore," the budget document read. The BMC earned only Rs 605 crore between April 1, 2023, to January 31, 2024, from property tax. A proposal to keep property tax rates unchanged for 2023-24 was pending before the Maharashtra cabinet and a decision was expected on Monday, after which the civic body will issue property tax bills, municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal said.

Property tax is the second-highest revenue source after grant-in-aid on account of compensation in lieu of Octroi. Being an election year, no rise in property tax is expected in 2024-25. BMC has estimated an income of Rs 4,950 crore from property tax, Rs 13,331.63 crore from grant-in-aid in lieu of Octroi, Rs 5,800 crore from DP department, Rs 2,206.30 crore from interest on investment, Rs 1,923.19 crore from water and sewerage charges.

Chahal also said that about 70 per cent land of Dharavi, considered to be the biggest slum cluster in Asia, belongs to the BMC, hence the civic body was also going to request the state government to allocate some portion of the premium from the Dharavi redevelopment project.