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Nagpur: The issue of inflated tax demands being issued to property owners is likely to dominate the Special General Body (GBM) meeting of Nagpur Municipal Corporation to be held on December 28 or 29 at Town Hall, Mahal.
Notably, the NMC Administration just before the elections had increased the property tax but the ruling party scuttled the move. The civic body has entrusted the job of creating a comprehensive computerized geo-enabled property database to support assessment and consolidation of all revenues to a private firm M/s Cybertech Systems and Software Ltd. The ruling as well opposition parties found glaring shortcomings in the data collected by the Cybertech. Now, under the pressure of all-party corporators, the Special GBM is being held on December 28 or 29 in which the issue of inflated property tax demands will be reviewed. The revised tax demands could be issued based on the outcome of the GBM.
Even otherwise the M/s Cybertech Systems and Software Ltd is facing a number of allegations. The allegations include:
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Sat 21 Dec. 2024
- The company was ‘blacklisted’ by Amravati Municipal Corporation but still NMC awarded job to it.
- The firm is run by a former office-bearer of ruling party. Many of NMC’s contractors, ruling corporators and office-bearers have indirect partnership in the company.
- The company though videographed most of the property survey but valuation report was done on the basis of ‘pro data base.’ It led to flawed valuation of properties.
- The company showed bogus units to increase its revenue.
- The parameters to calculate property tax were wrongly mentioned in their tax details.
- Full tax demands were issued to even those who had deposited the advance tax. In the areas where common water meter exists, the water tax was incorporated in property tax demands.
- The company is issuing inflated tax demands to property owners without giving them an opportunity to raise objection.
The Corporators across the party lines have demanded to put the M/s Cybertech Systems and Software Ltd in blacklist for wrongful valuation of properties. The NMC administration should bifurcate the Property Tax Department into three separate sub divisions such as Tax Auditing, Tax Recovery and the Department dealing with defaulters. Cancellation of inflated tax demands and issuance of fresh ones. The NMC should recover the property tax with full force. The educational institutions running vocational ventures should also be brought under commercial tax bracket. The NMC should also make public all the records of property tax submitted by the employees, demanded the corporators.
