Tarun Goswami
tarun@thestatesman.net
Kolkata, 9 July
With the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) extending the last date for submission of property information forms (PIF) in 18 wards to 20 July and making the completion of general revaluation (GR) in these wards by December this year impossible, senior civic officials have been misinforming the chief minister that general revaluation in all the 141 wards would be completed by this year, to keep themselves safe.
The GR which is done once in six years was stopped following the instruction of the then railway minister Miss Mamata Banerjee in September 2010 as she did not want to put the tax burden on the property owners of the city. As a result, KMC revenue collection dwindled. To save the situation, state government allowed KMC to introduce the property tax waiver scheme which fetched Rs 400 odd crores.
Finding no other option KMC approached Miss Banerjee and after getting her consent decided to do GR in the city. For the first time property owners were asked to submit property information form (PIF) giving details of their property and on the basis of the information given by them GR would be done. The last date for submission of PIF was 30 June.But as less than 5% of property owners in 18 wards submitted PIF, KMC extended the dates to 6 July and subsequently to 20 July. Senior officials apprehend that not more than 25% of property owners would submit PIF within the stipulated time and the civic authorities will have to further extend the date. If all property owners submit PIF by 20 July, then after sorting them out, inspectors of the Assessment department will visit their premises to verify their declaration from August. This process will take at least two months for the 18 wards selected. After this, the property owners would be sent hearing notices.