Bengaluru civic body collects record Rs 4,930 crore in property taxes during 2024-25; rise of 25% from previous year

According to the BBMP, Yelahanka performed the best, collecting Rs 19 crore more than its target. The zone generated a revenue of Rs 464 crore against the target of Rs 445 crore. Yelahanka and Mahadevapura are the only two zones to exceed the target.

Mahadevapura zone collected the highest amount, Rs 1,310.58 crore, slightly exceeding its target by Rs 1.54 crore. Despite the highest collection, it ranks second due to the higher percentage of collection achieved by Yelahanka. South zone collected Rs 733 crore but fell short of its target by Rs 35.85 crore, achieving 94.62 per cent of its target, well over the average percentage.

With this, the BBMP has achieved 94 per cent of its revenue target for the 2024-25 financial year, falling short of just Rs 280 crore.

East zone, which collected Rs 834 crore, missed its target by Rs 57.75 crore. Dasarahalli had the lowest target at Rs 165 crore as well as lowest collection among zones at Rs 152 crore. Meanwhile, Rajarajeshwari Nagar missed its target by Rs 52.60 crore, with the second-lowest percentage of collection achieved at 87.89 per cent, showing weaker performance. With Rs 490 crore in collection, Bommanahalli achieved the lowest percentage of property tax collection, missing its target by Rs 95.08 crore, indicating significant underperformance.

Overall, civic officials largely attributed the high rate of collection to its initiatives like the One-Time Settlement (OTS) scheme, property attachments (81,644 properties), and door-to-door campaigns which contributed to the strong overall collection of 94.62 per cent.

“Zones like Yelahanka and Mahadevapura may have benefited more from these efforts, possibly due to better compliance or more commercial properties paying under OTS,” a BBMP official noted.

Meanwhile, officials observed that the lower percentage of property tax collection by Bommanahalli and Rajarajeshwari Nagar zones could be due to lower compliance rates, fewer high-value properties and challenges in recovery, including legal disputes and unregistered properties. Buoyed by Yelahanka’s success rate at 104.36 per cent, the BBMP is set to replicate its strategies in other zones, such as better community engagement and stricter enforcement.

Merging solid waste management fee with property tax

While the civic agency has generated record property tax revenue, the introduction of Solid Waste Management (SWM) User Fee from April 1 will likely bolster its revenues further.

The BBMP introduced a mandatory SWM fee from this month to fund waste management, with residential rates based on built-up area ranging from Rs 10 per month for properties up to 600 sq ft (Rs 120 per year) to Rs 400 per month for properties of 4,000 sq ft or more (Rs 4,800 per year), while mid-sized properties pay Rs 100–Rs 200 per month.

Commercial properties face an SWM fee of Rs 12 per kg of waste, up from Rs 5 per kg, and this fee is added to annual property tax bills, aiming to generate Rs 685–750 crore yearly for Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Limited (BSWML). The SWM fee increases the tax burden by 20–35 per cent, raising concerns about transparency and waste clearance efficiency, and from 2025-26, it will fully merge with property tax, with a planned 5 per cent annual increase.

No new parking tax introduced

Contrary to some media reports, BBMP clarified that there is no new parking tax, as property tax on parking areas has existed for decades, and their recent draft proposal aims to reduce and standardise these rates to encourage the creation of parking spaces. Currently, parking areas are taxed at 50 per cent of the property’s Unit Area Value (UAV) rate, with commercial spaces averaging Rs 7 per sq ft (up to Rs 12.50) and residential averaging Rs 2.1 per sq ft, but the proposed rates would lower this to a flat Rs 3 per sq ft for commercial/non-residential and Rs 2 per sq ft for residential properties.

According to the civic body, this reduction aims to lower the tax burden and simplify calculations, but it would cut BBMP’s parking tax revenue by approximately Rs 40 crore from the Rs 211 crore collected in 2024-25, in a deliberate loss to benefit citizens.

The draft proposal faced pushback, particularly on residential rates, leading BBMP to re-examine the residential parking tax for further reduction based on public feedback, though the proposal remains unimplemented, pending government approval.

“Misinformation in some media reports wrongly labelled this as a ‘new tax’, creating confusion, when the intent is to reduce costs,” the BBMP noted in its press statement released on Monday.