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In a bold move to enhance property tax recovery, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has deployed an all-woman task force, the Damini Squad. The newly-formed squads have already collected over INR 1 crore within just a few days. With property tax dues amounting to nearly INR 10,000 crore, PMC aims to recover a significant portion this financial year, including outstanding amounts from properties and mobile towers.
The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has established the Damini Squad, an all-woman task force, in a concerted effort to speed up property tax recovery. Launched earlier this week, the initiative aims to address the mounting backlog of unpaid taxes within the city. The PMC has mobilized 12 squads so far, each comprising five women officers, with the possibility of adding more depending on the requirements. Over the past few days alone, these squads have managed to recover over INR 1 crore. Advertisement
PMC typically garners around INR 2,000 crore annually through property tax collections. However, for the 2024-25 fiscal year, the civic body has set an ambitious target of INR 2,500 crore. Officials, though, have indicated that actual recovery needs to be closer to INR 3,000 crore to balance pending dues, which currently stand at approximately INR 10,000 crore. The city has around 14.5 lakh registered properties, making property tax one of PMC's most crucial revenue streams.
A senior PMC property tax department official mentioned that constraints such as the ban on collecting tax from recently merged areas have hindered revenue generation. In response, the administration is exploring alternative strategies, including auctioning properties belonging to chronic defaulters, to meet its recovery goals for the year.
The challenge extends beyond residential and commercial properties. Civic officials highlighted that mobile towers across the city are also key contributors to tax arrears. With over 3,000 towers in Pune-of which a survey conducted two years ago identified around 1,600 as illegal-tax recovery from these structures has become increasingly complicated. PMC levies commercial tax rates on these towers, but operators' objections and state government directives to proceed cautiously until legal matters are resolved have delayed action.
While local activists have welcomed the formation of the Damini Squad, they argue that more attention should be directed towards recovering dues from major defaulters.
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