The GVMC’s property tax collections, including the vacant land tax receipts, for the just concluded 2022-23 financial year stood at 421.5 crore. This is the highest ever tax revenue realised by the Vizag civic body. By doing so, the GVMC surpassed its self-target of 375 crore tax collections for the 2023 fiscal.
According to the GVMC officials, the interest waiver announced by the state government for the long-term defaulters or for the accumulated dues, as a one-time measure, worked in favour of the civic body. The decision has been taken by the state government at the request of various people’s representatives and officials following the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
After realising 302 crore revenue in the 2018-19 fiscal, the tax flow of the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation took a severe beating due to the then highly prevailing Covid-19 pandemic in 2019 and 2020. The civic body collected only 224 crore and 274 crore respectively in the 2020 and 21 FYs.
The GVMC could improve its revenue to a certain extent to 324 crore in 2022. The GVMC further bettered its tax performance in the 2023 financial year to shatter all the previous records.
GVMC mayor G Hari Venkata Kumari said the city has about 5.6 lakh tax assessments. “People of Visakhapatnam utilised the tax waiver declared by the state government and paid their taxes and dues on time. By paying taxes, people will become an integral part of the development of the city,” said Hari Venkata Kumari.
GVMC commissioner P Raja Babu said the GVMC itself initially set a target of 375 crore tax collections for the 2023 financial year. “The GVMC revenue wing’s constant efforts yielded results as the collections crossed its target and 420 crore mark for the first time in the GVMC’s history,” said Raja Babu.
The GVMC has been levying property tax based on the market price of the property since 2021-22 as against the earlier method of calculating tax based on the rental value of the property. This means, whenever the property prices are revised by the government, the property taxes will correspondingly go northwards. However, the annual hike of property tax has been capped at a maximum of 15%.
