Pune Nagrik Sanghatna hails tax freeze

The Pune Nagrik Sanghatna (PNS) on Saturday congratulated the municipal commissioner for not proposing any tax hike in the next financial year and claimed there will not be any need for a hike for the next five years if there is proper recovery of dues by
the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC).

Civic activist Vivek Velankar said the PNS, an umbrella group of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and civic activists formed to contest the PMC elections, had pointed out that there are tax dues of about Rs750 crore. If the PMC recovered the dues, it would not need to increase taxes for the next 5 years.

The municipal commissioner has taken cognisance of the demand by the PNS and not proposed any tax hike as the civic body has undertaken a drive to recover dues.

It was the PNS which had, using the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005 highlighted that in the last three months there were tax dues of more than Rs750 crore: property tax dues of more than Rs420 crore, water tax dues of Rs307 crore and rent from PMC properties of Rs18 crore.

The PNS had demanded that the administration undertake a drive to recover the dues.

The municipal administration has put a proposal before the standing committee about local taxes for the next financial year (2012-13). It has not proposed any hike, stating that it would not be required as it has undertaken a drive to recover dues.