With only a week left for the financial year-end, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is resorting to desperate measures to recover property tax arrears from long-time defaulters.
Circle-level officials of the Revenue wing have started to seize the properties with regard to which the dues of more than one year are pending, causing anxiety among the residents less than two months ahead of parliamentary elections. While officials are mum about the procedure adopted, it has come to light that commercial properties are being targeted in the drive, after issue of notices and warrants.
About 140 properties have been seized across the 30 circles so far, with Jubilee Hills and Yousufguda alone accounting for over 60 seized properties. Already, a one time settlement scheme is on offer for the defaulters, for whom 90% interest waiver will be available if they settle the dues along with 10% interest. Sources informed that the scheme has not evoked much interest, forcing the officials to resort to extreme measures in order to fill the coffers.
While the corporation targets to earn ₹2,100 crore in the current year by way of property tax, the collection is still short of ₹500 crore- ₹600 crore, it is learnt.
