MARGAO
A new year has dawned, but revenue recoveries at the Margao Municipal Council for the current financial year do not inspire much confidence, with the outstanding revenue arrears pegged at a whopping Rs 16.5-odd crore as of date.
Take note, the Margao Municipal Council has three months at its disposal to effect the outstanding arrears before curtains come down on the current financial year on March 31.
As usual, house tax tops the list on the arrears front, with the outstanding recoveries pegged at Rs 12.34 crore. Trade licence follows suit with the total arrears pegged at Rs 3.19 crore. Even rent arrears from the municipal properties, including rent from the two congested markets of New Market and the Gandhi Market, are hovering at Rs 95 lakh. The revenue recovery of advertising signboards, which constitute a major revenue chunk for the civic body, is also far from satisfactory, with the arrears pegged at Rs 54.76 lakhs.
These outstanding recovery figures, sources said, are just the tip of the iceberg. Officials in private said there are two aspects to the revenue recoveries. One is the households and establishments, which are on the revenue register of the civic body but have defaulted on the payments. The second category of defaulters comprises households and commercial establishments, which are not assessed for house and trade tax but have been operating in the commercial capital without the mandatory licences.
For, going by the frank admission of Margao civic chief Damu Shirodkar, hundreds, if not thousands, of commercial establishments have been operating in the city sans the mandatory trade licence and licence for advertising boards. In fact, the MMC chairperson has been candid in admitting that a survey has revealed that around 40 per cent of the commercial establishments in his Aquem ward have been operating sans a trade licence.
That’s not all. Hundreds of illegal households exist in the city, enjoying civic benefits and amenities, including garbage collection, but do not pay the house tax to the civic body, causing a drain in the tax revenue.
The Margao Municipal Council has employed a retired government officer as the Recovery Officer to tone up the revenue recoveries but still, there has been no major turnaround in the recovery of the outstanding arrears.
When 'The Goan' asked MMC Chief Officer Gaurish Sankhwalkar to shed light on the huge outstanding recoveries, he was quick to point out that the figures may not reflect the actual ground reality.
“There may be instances of errors in assessing the households for households in respect of households and commercial establishments. The civic body has requested the NIC to rectify the situation and prune the list, striking out the non-existent establishments,” he said.
REVENUE ARREARS OF MARGAO CIVIC BODY: House tax “ Rs 12.34 crore; Trade Licence “ Rs 3.19 crore; Rent “ Rs 95 lakh; Signboards “ Rs 54.76 lakh
