The financial condition of the Nanded Waghala City Municipal Corporation (NWCMC) is critical; the administration has to struggle even to pay the monthly salaries of the employees. Under these circumstances, it has become a challenge for the corporation to recover the pending property and water taxes to the tune of Rs 270 crore from the residents. Presently, there are 1.43 lakh taxpayers in the NWCMC jurisdiction, of which around 1.19 lakh taxpayers have outstanding taxes to the tune of around Rs 270 crore.
The collection of the taxes is going at a snail’s pace since the Covid crisis, and the present situation has not yet improved. Despite taking several measures to recover the taxes, like visiting the doorsteps of the taxpayers, the situation has not improved. As this move was severely opposed, the initiative was stopped.
The NWCMC has been under the control of the administrator for the past three years, yet the recovery has not gained much progress. Moreover, the municipal elections will be held in the next few months, and then the recovery drive is further likely to be affected. The corporation is now facing financial crunches. The corporation has to remain dependent on various government sources even to pay the monthly salaries of the employees.
The taxes of the corporation are not outstanding with the residents alone but also with government departments, police, and renowned educational institutions. There are 2,272 property owners whose taxes are pending in the range of Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1 crore. The list of these establishments has been declared by the corporation on its website, yet there has not been the expected recovery from them. The corporation has now issued a warning of property seizure to them.
On the other hand, the residents claim that the corporation has not provided necessary basic amenities to the public. They will not pay the taxes unless they get proper civic amenities, they said.
