MARGAO
Margao Municipal Council on Monday mopped up tax arrears amounting to Rs 10 lakh, but the amount fell short of the salary bill requirement, leaving the civic employees without their salary for the month of September for the fifth day running on Monday.
This is perhaps the first time in recent years that the MMC employees have had to wait for their salary for want of funds in the civic coffers.
Take note, Margao Municipal Chief Officer Agnelo Fernandes’ efforts to mop up revenue by deploying additional recovery teams have started showing results on Monday, with the civic body recovery touching Rs 10 lakh on a single day.
Monday’s recovery has only given hopes to the civic employees that additional efforts in effecting the recoveries will help arrange money for the salary payment at least by the weekend.
Inquiries by ‘The Gaon’ has revealed that while the salary bill of the civic employees is pegged around 1.5 crore, the Municipal fund position is yet to touch the Rs one crore mark as on Monday, setting a clear task for the MMC taxation section to mop up around Rs 70-80 lakhs in the next couple of days for early disbursement of salary.
The MMC Chief Officer as well as Chairperson Lyndon Pereira has exuded confidence that the pace of revenue recovery shown by the administration will help arrange the necessary funds for the salary payment.
In fact, the Chief Officer pointed out that if the current recovery position is maintained for the next couple of days, the employees can look forward to receive their salaries by the weekend. “We are also concerned that the employees have not received their salaries. But, we are helpless since we have to go for recoveries to pay the salary”, he said.
Incidentally, while the MMC is presently on the job to mop up revenue recovery to meet the Rs 1.5 crore salary bill of the civic employees, the civic body will have to arrange an additional Rs 30-40 lakhs in the coming days to clear the bill of the daily wage and contract workers.
Normally, the 200-odd daily wage and contract workers used to receive their wages around the 7th day of every month, after the civic body clears the salaries of its employees. However, with the employees yet to get their salaries, the daily wage and contract workers will have to wait till the MMC team effects the recoveries.
Says Chief Officer Agnelo: “The MMC cannot go for premature withdrawal of the fixed deposits, since we have failed to recoup the FD which was availed recently as per the approval of the Director, Urban Development. The only option now left for the civic body is to get the employees recover the arrears and meet the salary bill”.
MMC’s outstanding tax arrears is presently pegged at a whopping Rs 18-odd crore.
