NMMC recovers ₹3.5 crore in taxes after Lok Adalat notices

Lok Adalat’s concept is for residents to resolve their complaints with government organisations with respect to various services.

Navi Mumbai: The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation has recovered more than ₹3.50 crore in taxes after Lok Adalat issued notices to the citizens of the city.

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The collection through the Lok Adalat and the amnesty scheme announced recently, is expected to boost the collection of the civic body before the close of the current financial year. The civic body, which has collected ₹296.55 crore property tax till November 2022, has estimated an additional revenue of ₹288.44 crore taking the total collection in the current financial year to ₹575 crore. It has targeted ₹801 crore next year with expectations of a higher collection after the addition in records of properties following the LIDAR survey.

Lok Adalat’s concept is for residents to resolve their complaints with government organisations with respect to various services. It is in this context that the national Lok Adalat was held in the Belapur node of Navi Mumbai recently.

“The Lok Adalat had both pre-litigation and post-litigation issues involving citizens, businessmen, government and semi-government organisations, industrialists etc. NMMC has issued court notices to property tax defaulters. Court notices have also been issued to property holders with over ₹25,000 in dues,” said additional municipal commissioner Sujata Dhole,

“Local Body Tax (LBT) and Cess have been discontinued and replaced by Goods and Services Tax (GST). There are however businessmen in the city, who still haven’t paid LBT and Cess, which was due from them earlier. NMMC had sent court notices to them as well,” she added.

Dhole said that the Small Scale Entrepreneur Association which had filed a petition in the Supreme Court has obtained a stay on payment of interest and penalty. They were issued Lok Adalat notices to pay the principal amount due.

Informed Dhole, “Following receipt of the Lok Adalat notices, several sensitive businessmen themselves took the initiative and paid the due LBT and Cess to NMMC. The other property taxpayers who too were in default and had been issued notices responded and paid their property tax dues.”

Giving details of the payments received, she said, “Instruction letters had been sent to over 900 defaulters for the recovery of Property Tax and LBT/Cess arrears before the formal filing of a claim with Taluka Legal Services Committee. In response, the LBT/Cess defaulters paid ₹92 lakh and property tax defaulters paid ₹1.05 crore at the Lok Adalat. In the week after that LBT/Cess defaulters paid a further ₹1.5 cr.”

For property tax holders who do not pay their dues in time, NMMC has given an opportunity by providing a window between February 15 to March 31 to pay their tax dues.

The amnesty scheme for property tax defaulters provides for a waiver of up to 75% of delay payment charges. Defaulters will have to pay just the due amount plus 25% of the delay payment charges if they pay early.

“Everyone has been affected by the covid pandemic lockdown in the previous two years. The business has been affected and people have lost their jobs. In such a scenario several people have not been able to pay their dues,” said municipal commissioner Rajesh Narvekar.

He added, “Things are now getting back to normal and hence we have decided to give some relief to the defaulters. Those who pay their dues by March 15 will get a relief of 75% in the penalty imposed for default. The others who pay later up to March 31 will get a 50% relief in the DPC.”

Dhole said that those who fail to take advantage of this opportunity will be issued notices and their properties and bank accounts can be seized.

Residents can get more details on the scheme on the civic website www.nmmc.gov.in