House tax, sanitation fees, and trade licences top the list of dues, with the council facing mounting financial challenges
Challenges loom for the Margao Municipal Council as it works to resolve increasing tax arrears.
Photo Credits: The Goan
MARGAO
Hazard a guess on the total outstanding tax arrears staring at the Margao Municipal Council in the New Year as of January 1, 2025?
Well, the Margao civic body has started the New Year 2025 with a total outstanding tax arrears amounting to a whopping Rs 33.18 crore.
Take note, the arrears reflected in the civic body’s computer-generated data may just be the tip of the iceberg, considering the fact that there are hundreds, if not thousands, of business establishments operating in the city without the mandatory trade license or conducting business without paying advertising fees to the civic body.
A glance at the tax arrears shows that house tax tops the list of revenue heads for outstanding tax arrears. House tax is followed by sanitation fees. Taken together, the total outstanding tax arrears from house tax and sanitation fees are pegged at around Rs 27 crore — Rs 14.49 crore in house tax and Rs 12.78 crore in sanitation fees.
Trade license fees figure third on the list of tax arrears. Municipal data shows that the outstanding trade license fees owed to the civic body by business establishments are pegged at Rs 3.74 crore.
The revenue from signboards is another area where the civic body has failed to tap the revenue potential. The tax arrears from signboards show outstanding arrears amounting to Rs 64.64 lakh in revenue from signboards.
What may come as a shock and surprise is that the Margao Municipal Babus have been found wanting in the recovery of rent from municipal properties. As of January 1, 2025, the total rent due to the municipal body on municipal properties is pegged at Rs 1.33 crore, raising the question of why the civic body has failed to recover rent from its own properties.
What could be the possible reasons for the mounting tax arrears in the Margao Municipal Council when the civic body has appointed a Recovery Officer to effect revenue recoveries?
Civic officials in the know say the tax arrears data may not exactly reflect the reality, considering the fact that there are many establishments which no longer exist on the ground.
Margao civic chief Damu Shirodkar conceded that the municipal tax arrears have been mounting over the years, adding that he has decided to concentrate on recoveries in the New Year. In fact, the Margao Civic Chief said he has initiated a drive in which municipal market inspectors will fan out to the city every day, beginning from the New Year, to identify the number of establishments operating without the mandatory trade license and advertising fees.
“I have decided to focus on revenue recoveries in 2025. Our salary bill works out to over Rs two crore every month. There should not be any problem in disbursing the salaries and wages to the municipal employees and workers if there’s a steady recovery of the outstanding tax arrears,” Damu added.
Arrears may be 'tip of the iceberg'
The huge outstanding tax revenue arrears staring at the Margao civic body may just be the tip of the iceberg.
For, a Geographic Information Survey (GIS) around half a decade ago had suggested huge revenue leakage, with commercial establishments operating in the commercial capital without the mandatory trade licence.
In fact, the GIS survey carried out in a single Margao Municipal ward had pointed out that the MMC is losing revenue to the tune of Rs 3.5 crore from the heart of the commercial capital.
Curiously, the GIS report has not been implemented to date, for reasons best known to the Margao City Fathers and the municipal babus. In fact, the GIS survey report was kept under wraps for years before it finally surfaced after the issue figured in the Goa Legislative Assembly earlier this year.
New GIS survey begins, but implementation months away
Even as the GIS survey report is gathering dust in the corridors of the civic body, the Goa State Urban Development Agency (GSUDA)-appointed agency has kicked off the work of conducting the GIS survey in the commercial capital.
However, it will take months before the survey is implemented by the Margao Municipal Council.
A GSUDA official told 'The Goan' that the agency has started the work of conducting the GIS survey in Margao, saying the agency has so far covered 1,600 establishments to date.
“The agency has been given time until March 31, 2025, to complete the survey in the city. Right now, the agency has completed around 1,600 establishments since the exercise began in November last year. The agency has three more months at its disposal to complete the process,” the official said.
The GSUDA official further pointed out that after the survey is completed on March 31, the agency will need three more months to compile the report before it is implemented in Margao.
