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Bengaluru municipal body collects ₹30 lakh in property tax dues ahead of property auction
Greater Bengaluru Authority has recovered ₹30.4 lakh in property tax dues ahead of auction proceedings in Jayanagar and Bommanahalli zones
The Bengaluru South City Corporation has collected ₹30.4 lakh in pending property tax dues after initiating auction proceedings against defaulting properties in South Bengaluru’s Jayanagar and Bommanahalli zones on March 13, according to a Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) statement.
According to the civic body, 50 properties with the highest property tax arrears in each zone were identified and brought under the auction process as part of efforts to recover outstanding dues.
In the Bommanahalli zone, 50 residential and non-residential properties with total pending dues of ₹95.5 lakh were listed. However, before the auction could take place, 17 property owners cleared their dues through challans or online payments, resulting in a recovery of ₹27.58 lakh. Following this, these properties were removed from the auction process, the GBA statement said.
Also Read: Bengaluru’s GBA auctions seven properties to recover tax arrears, attracts over ₹7 crore in bids
The remaining 33 properties received no bids. GBA officials said these properties will be re-auctioned in the coming days.
In the Jayanagar zone, 50 properties with total property tax arrears of ₹83.5 lakh were also taken up for auction proceedings. Out of these, two property owners paid ₹2.89 lakh towards their dues, leaving ₹80.69 lakh pending from the remaining 48 properties, the statement said.
Two bidders attended the auction proceedings but did not show interest in placing bids, GBA officials said.
The GBA statement said that the civic body will write to the electricity provider, Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM), and the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) to disconnect electricity and water connections to properties with pending property tax dues.
Earlier, the State Finance Commission (SFC) expressed concern that pending property tax dues could limit resource mobilisation for the five city corporations under the Greater Bengaluru Authority. To address this, the fifth SFC report has proposed an EMI-style scheme, allowing taxpayers to pay in monthly instalments instead of a lump sum, as per news reports.
Also Read: Bengaluru’s municipal body to auction 50 properties to recover ₹95 lakh property tax dues
GBA auctions seven properties
Earlier, GBA auctioned seven properties across the East and North zones, attracting bids worth over ₹7 crore, as part of efforts to recover long-pending dues running into hundreds of crores, according to details shared by the civic authority.
The municipal body said nearly 7,000 properties across the city have accumulated property tax arrears totalling ₹437 crore.
Of the seven properties auctioned, two were within the North City Corporation limits, and five were within the East City Corporation.
On the auction of properties for non-payment of property tax, Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar had said earlier that most defaulters are commercial property owners who have failed to pay taxes for the past seven to eight years. He made the remarks during a press conference at the GBA office on February 21.
