Pay property tax or face water cuts, Pune civic body warns nearly 6 lakh defaulters

The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has decided to cut off water supply to properties yet to pay their property tax. In Pune city, there are 14.8 lakh properties, of which approximately 9 lakh have paid a total of Rs 1,872 crore in the current financial year. The remaining 5.8 lakh properties now face water disconnection.

“It is our appeal to the owners of all residential as well as commercial properties to clear their dues of property tax immediately and avoid the civic body decision to snap the water supply lines to the respective properties,” said Deputy Municipal Commissioner Madhav Jagtap, incharge of the property tax department of the PMC, on Wednesday. He said property tax is the important source of revenue collection which enables the civic body to carry out development works in the city.

Advertisement

Last month, the civic administration formed five special squads to collect dues from those defaulting property tax by visiting properties. “The special squad recovered Rs 71.41 crore in dues from defaulting properties over the past month. They seal the properties if the dues remain unpaid,” he said.

He added that it was observed that many property owners still had not cleared their dues. As a result, the PMC decided to disconnect water supply to those properties. Jagtap mentioned that each of the five squads assigned to the five zones will consist of a plumber and three labourers, along with a regional civic inspector and a ward-level civic inspector.

“The snapped water supply connection will be restored only after the dues are cleared by the respective owner of the property,” he said.