Ghaziabad mayor calls board meeting over property-tax hike

Of late, the residents, associations, etc., have raised concerns over the inflated tax under the new property tax system, and many councillors have also submitted letters to the mayor, raising objections

Ghaziabad: The Ghaziabad mayor has called a special meeting of the board of the municipal corporation on June 30 to discuss the prevailing issues related to the property tax hike, following implementation of the new structure and residents complaining of exorbitant hikes this financial year.

The hike in property tax has been 1.5 to 1.75 times on an average. The instances where residents are finding bills on a higher side are those where additional construction has been made or commercial activities have been initiated, said the corporation’s chief tax assessment officer Sanjeev Sinha. (Sakib Ali/HT archives)

Of late, the residents, associations, etc., have raised concerns over the inflated tax under the new property tax system, and many councillors have also submitted letters to the mayor, raising objections.

Mayor Sunita Dayal said the meeting will be focussed on discussing issues related to the property tax. “We intend that legitimate tax should be levied, and residents should also pay up as per their property. In cases of complaints about the higher tax, the properties are getting verified and corrections made. During discussion, I will ensure that the minutes of the meeting are recorded simultaneously and issued by the end of the day,” Dayal said.

Tax inspectors will also be held accountable for verifications of properties and more temporary staff will also be hired by the corporation, she added.

Already, three former councillors, Rajendra Tyagi, Himanshu Mittal and Anil Swami have opposed the hike as per the new structure and also moved the Allahabad high court in a Public Interest Litigation over which the next hearing is due on July 29.

The petitioners have contended that the hike has been exorbitant to the tune of about three to five times, and residents are heavily burdened.

“We hope that the present councillors who have opposed the hike and have submitted the letters to the mayor should stand by their decision and bring relief to the residents,” said a former councillor Mittal.

Property tax in Ghaziabad includes three components -- house tax (10%), sewage/drainage tax (4%), and water tax (10%). According to officials, the corporation has about 450,000 old properties, while about 125,000 more new properties (including those untaxed) also exist.

“The hike in property tax has been 1.5 to 1.75 times on an average. The instances where residents are finding bills on a higher side are those where additional construction has been made or commercial activities have been initiated. The rest issues will be discussed in the board meeting,” said corporation’s chief tax assessment officer Sanjeev Sinha.