Oil prices empty citizens’ pockets, fill BMC kitty

The escalating prices of crude oil are burning a hole in citizens’ pockets but filling up the civic body’s kitty.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is likely to earn revenue worth Rs5,000 crore through octroi this financial year.
The octroi department has already earned 80% of revenue till December. Officials of BMC’s assessment and collection department claimed that with the prices of crude oil set to rise the next three months will further set the civic body’s cash register ringing.

Import of crude oil by oil companies — HPCL, BPCL, IOC and ONGC — contributes to a major portion of the octroi revenue collected. The price fluctuates between $70 and $80 per barrel. But officials claimed that the per-barrel-cost is expected to reach $90.

A jump of Rs300 crore has been recorded in the octroi revenue collected during this time of the year. Octroi is a local tax levied on various articles brought into a state. The octroi collection last December stood at Rs3,243 crore. While, the revenue till December 26 this year alone stands at 3529 crore. A steady hike in crude oil import too has been recorded as compared to last year.

“The increase in octroi collection can be attributed to considerable crude oil imports and stringent vigil at the octroi gates,” said a senior civic official. Witnessing the upswing, the BMC has also revised its octroi collection estimates.

A hike of Rs1,000 crore has been recorded so far. The octroi collection target has been revised to Rs4,934 crore this year. In the year 2008-09, it stood at Rs4,514 crore against a target of Rs4,425 crore. In the financial year 2007-08, the octroi revenue was Rs4,050 crore.

“The economy is recovering at a quick pace and the impact can be observed in the octroi collection. Vigilance at the octroi gates has also been beefed up,” the official added.