BENGALURU: Though there has been an increase of 24.79 % in property tax collection, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has still fallen short by 60.1% if targeted tax collection is taken into account. The first four months of this fiscal year have proven financially beneficial for BBMP, as it has seen a 24.79% increase in its tax collection. The total tax collection across all eight zones rose from ₹2,457.30 crore (April 1, 2023, to July 31, 2023) to ₹3,065.82 crore (April 1, 2024, to July 31, 2024).3 factors
BBMP Chief Commissioner Tushar Giri Nath explained that three main factors contributed to this rise. “Firstly, defaulters who had not paid for a long time have now contributed ₹184 crore. Out of 3,95,250 defaulters, 1,07,344 have paid taxes under the One Time Settlement (OTS) scheme, bringing an additional ₹271.50 crore to the tax kitty.” However, if all 3.95 lakh defaulters had paid their taxes, BBMP could have collected ₹733.31 crore. This leaves 2,74,721 defaulters, from whom BBMP is yet to collect ₹516.21 crore. The OTS target shortfall is estimated to be a whopping 70.4%. Yet, BBMP is happy that it at least brought 29.6% into the tax net.Secondly, many property owners revised their self-assessment, he said. Although BBMP had expected that 16,501 properties would undergo tax revisions under the self-assessment scheme, potentially bringing in ₹222.38 crore, the first four months saw an upward revision in property taxes for 6,723 properties, resulting in an additional ₹163.13 crore. However, 16,904 properties are yet to be revised, leaving BBMP to collect ₹282.59 crore with an estimated shortfall to be 26.7%. Overall, BBMP had anticipated collecting ₹956.09 crore in property tax from 4,11,751 properties as of April 1, 2024, it has only managed to collect ₹380.63 crore from 1,14,067 properties by July 31, 2024. This means BBMP still needs to collect ₹831.53 crore from 3,04,810 defaulters. Server crash
Although July 31 was the deadline for OTS, there was a significant surge in property tax payments on Wednesday, causing server issues. In response, the BBMP central office and other tax offices remained open late into the night. Those unable to pay online submitted SAS applications and made payments offline through demand drafts and cheques. On Wednesday alone, offline payments amounted to ₹150 crore.
Nath said, “The NIC software has crashed, and we have received many representations and complaints. This issue will be discussed at the government level. We will review the situation and gather details on how many could not pay.”
What’s next?
BBMP officials have announced that notices will be sent to property tax defaulters, with the possibility of auctioning properties ahead. Property owners who have not paid their taxes will receive three notices. If payment is not made after these notices, the revenue department will take stringent actions.
Out of 3,95,250 defaulters, 1,07,344 have paid taxes under the One Time Settlement scheme, bringing an additional `271.50 crore to the tax kitty –Tushar Giri Nath, BBMP chief
Zonal property tax
Bommanahalli witnessed an increase in property tax collection from ₹267.12 crore in the first four months of 2023 to ₹316.10 crore in the first four months of this fiscal year, reflecting an 18.32% growth. Dasarahalli’s collections rose from ₹70.58 crore to ₹96.21 crore.
The East zone, a major contributor, increased its collection from ₹456.69 crore in 2023 to ₹544.46 crore in 2024. Mahadevapura saw a substantial rise from ₹643.43 crore to ₹808.40 crore. Rajarajeshwari Nagar’s collections improved from ₹163.99 crore to ₹212.42 crore. The South zone saw an increase from ₹385.86 crore to ₹459.01 crore. The West zone, which had ₹267.36 crore in 2023, collected ₹337.82 crore in 2024. Yelahanka experienced a significant rise, from ₹202.27 crore to ₹291.40 crore.
