In a proactive move to recover unpaid property taxes, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) is set to auction 50 commercial properties owned by tax defaulters in January. With outstanding property taxes amounting to Rs 8,000 crore, PMC aims to address the issue by taking possession of and auctioning properties of defaulters who have repeatedly failed to settle their dues.
Before resorting to auctions, PMC employs various measures, including issuing notices, attaching properties, and temporary sealing. Despite these efforts, some defaulters have not made payments, leading to the decision to auction the commercial properties. The auction is scheduled to take place in accordance with the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, empowering local self-governing bodies to initiate such proceedings for tax recovery.
Ajit Deshmukh, Head of PMC’s property tax department, highlighted that the properties identified for auction are commercial in nature, and repeated attempts were made to collect overdue taxes. With the outstanding dues remaining unpaid, the decision to proceed with the auction aims to compel compliance and recover the owed taxes.
PMC data for 2023 indicates that over 200 properties have been sealed, and these will be auctioned in stages, with an anticipated revenue of approximately Rs 245 crore. The municipal property tax department typically earns between Rs 1,800 crore and Rs 2,000 crore annually, making the recovery efforts crucial for financial stability.
The valuation of the properties earmarked for auction is currently under assessment, with an initial estimate suggesting a collection of around Rs 60 crore in the first phase. PMC’s efforts include not only auctions but also unique measures such as playing music bands outside defaulting properties and introducing an amnesty scheme to facilitate tax recovery.
Under PMC’s jurisdiction, around 12 lakh properties, including mobile towers and prominent defaulters such as industries, commercial complexes, IT parks, and hospitals, are subject to property tax. The tax covers basic house/building tax along with service taxes like street tax and conservancy/scavenging tax, collected either half-yearly or annually. To incentivize prompt payments, citizens settling their property tax before May 31 are eligible for a 10% discount.
