The civic body has recorded 88% increase in property tax collection in the first four months of the present fiscal year when compared to the same period in the previous financial year. Tax collection from April to July stood at Rs 21 crore for 2022-23.
In 2021-22, the corporation collected Rs 11 crore in the same time period. The monthly collection from April to July has consistently been above Rs 4 crore. May recorded the highest collection so far in the present fiscal year Rs 6 crore.
In May 2021-22, the corporation could only collect Rs 33 lakh, which is reflective of the phenomenal increase in tax receipts. One key factor which has contributed to the record rise in collection is the increased use of online tax payment. Between April and July, online receipts accounted for more than 50% of total collection.
“We have put in place a grievance redressal system which promptly takes care of glitches in online payment. Whenever there is an issue regarding refund, the corporation takes it up with Information Kerala Mission (IKM) and the team makes sure that the amount gets refunded within a week. This enhances the trust in the system,” said a corporation official.
The civic body also publishes an updated tax database on a monthly basis.
“This gives every resident a fair idea about the dues. Earlier, even the paid amount will reflect as dues and people would desist from online payment. We did a massive campaign to update all the payments and dues are now reflected accurately,” said the official.
The civic body had recorded a collection Rs 88 crore as property tax by the end of 2021-22. While it fell short of the target of Rs 100 crore, the corporation recorded around 14% increase in property tax collection when compared to the previous year.
The corporation had an annual demand of Rs 90 crore and collects 70-80% annually.
According to corporation officials, the collection of Rs 88 crore was unprecedented in the history of the civic body. The collection came in the backdrop of two Covid affected years when frequent lockdowns affected the people’s lives.
The corporation secretary had issued a circular to the revenue staff which listed down various ongoing measures to attain the target of Rs 100 crore. The civic body had started updating the list of tax defaulters on monthly basis in 2021. The revenue wing of the corporation had also identified over 700 defaulters who owed corporation tax dues above Rs 1 lakh. The cumulative dues from these defaulters were estimated at Rs 44 crore. By the end of 2021, the corporation managed to collect around Rs 17 crore following the updation of tax database in all the wards.
