In 2016-17, the MMC collected outstanding from arrears and collectibles for the year 2016-17 in terms of House tax was Rs 10.47 crores of which the government collected Rs 4.06 crores while an outstanding of Rs 6.28 remains pending. But the Rs 4.06 crores collected is not even 50% of the salaries to be disbursed in the Margao municipalities.
Over 150 municipal workers on the ground working on garbage collection are on daily wages and another 30 full-time and contract basis municipal workers are managing sanitations, cleanliness drives and market encroachments. Besides a staff over 113 people working in the Accounts, Taxation, Recovery, Library, Technical Section and salaries of whom touch a Rs one crore and ten lakh per month which is a whopping Rs 13.20 crores annually.
Sanitation and garbage fees amount to Rs 4.36 crores of which the municipality in the 2016-17 financial year has recovered just Rs 1.28 crores which marginally covers the cost of the garbage collection initiative.
An amount of about Rs 1.5 crores is raised annually from rent collected from various MMC owned properties and establishments, sopo tax and trade licence fees.
“The municipality has a lot of senior staff from electricians to technical engineers and even drivers, sweepers and peons and this entire staff draws salaries of around Rs 1.10 cr per month. Only the Daily Allowance is paid by the government” stated Damodar Yelekar, who recently has been transferred from Taxation officer to Administration and Accounts Officer Head.
In the 2015-16 audit report Margao Municipal Council was pointed out to have lost revenue worth over Rs three crores and that figured increased to Rs six crore as outstanding from house tax in the year 2016-17.
Also non-levy of interest on arrears at a rate of 12.5% on house tax during the last three financial years has resulted in an additional Rs 1.5 crores loss. Surprisingly the book of accounts show remissions or rather house tax waivers of around Rs 10.26 lakh across three wards which is shocking and has no explanation.
The Accountant General, Government of India report stated that huge arrears of house tax and rent for years together has not been levied while some of these exist since 1978.
Taxation Officer Abhay Rane told Herald that the department is yet to carry out required studies to ascertain the total number of homes and commercial spaces across Margao, parts of Navelim, Khareband, Aquem, Borda, Fatorda, Modsai, Gogol, Housing Board Davorlim.
Only when this is done then it would able to start a formal process of tax collection while at the moment tax collection is only from the walk-ins who pay house taxes and taxes levied on construction and trading licences.
But shockingly the superintendent of the tax department Subhash Kurtakar stated that his office is unable to give the exact figures of tax collections and hence the office is yet to compile and have such figures ready.
“If there is an RTI filed we would process and give you a reply or if the auditors ask us for the same; otherwise we’re unable to give you any figures off hand especially of the last two years,” stated Subhash.
The Chief Officer Agnelo Fernandes was unavailable for comments on taxes collected since he holds additional charge at the Collector’s Office. The disorganised tax and administrative offices of the municipality previously has also missed the bus because it failed to update and revise its plinth rate while levying house tax which is also stated in the central government audit report.
The audit report then stated that the civic body suffered loss of revenue to the extent of Rs 48.38 lakh due to non-adoption of the revised plinth rate.
“The only way possible till date is to continuously write to the DMA or Accounts Department and divert certain grants received by the MMC into salary grants which balances out our salaries to municipal staff but beyond that we’re unable to manage from our tax collection alone in the Margao municipality,” stated Yelekar.
