Decision to waive off property tax bills of properties up to 500-sq ft gets Maharashtra Cabinet nod

Ahead of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls, the Maharashtra cabinet on Wednesday approved the decision to completely waive off the property tax bills of residential properties measuring up to 500-sq ft in Mumbai. The decision will be implemented with effect from January 1, 2022.

As per the cabinet decision, property tax of residential properties up to 500-sq ft (46.45 sq mt), as per the demand by the BMC, has been waived off completely. The decision will benefit 16.14 lakh residential properties, which house lakhs of families in Mumbai.

However, due to the waiver, BMC will incur revenue loss of Rs 417 crore while the state will incur revenue loss of Rs 45 crore, totalling Rs 462 crore.

Sources said the Urban Development Department’s (UDD) proposal of waiving the property tax from April was rejected by Thackeray and UDD Minister Eknath Shinde who insisted that it should be effective from January. The government will soon issue an ordinance proposing an amendment to the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act 1888 to pave the way for implementation of waiver in property tax, sources said.

On January 1, CM Thackeray announced the decision to completely waive off property tax bills of residential properties measuring up to 500-sq ft in Mumbai.

The decision is being termed a New Year gift to Mumbaikars and is also being projected as the Shiv Sena fulfilling the promise given to the residents during the 2017 civic polls. The decision is expected to resonate with lakhs of middle and lower-middle-class families, which form Sena’s core voter base.

Following the 2017 elections, the Shiv Sena-ruled BMC waived off only the general tax component of the property tax in 2019 which led to a lot of criticism. Property tax comprises eight components, including general tax, water tax, sewerage tax, education cess, tree cess and water benefit tax among others. The general tax constitutes around 10 per cent to 30 per cent of the total amount.

The issue was also raised by the Opposition which sought a complete waiver in the winter session of the state legislature.