MCD stress on revenue collection

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, DEC. 7.

With no proposal for imposition of new taxes, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) intends to emphasises on collection of revenue in its Budget proposals for 2001-2002 which were presented before the Standing Committee here today. Besides continuing to give top priority to education, sanitation and cleanliness the civic body would also go in for a large-scale computerisation.

Presenting the Budget proposals, the Municipal Commissioner, Mr. S.P. Aggarwal, said he proposed to exempt from property tax one residential house of the original owners of the urbanised villages and give 15 per cent additional rebate to self-occupied flats of group housing societies.

The occasion was also utilised by Mr. Aggarwal for blaming the Delhi Government for MCD's financial stringency by its ``unilateral decision'' to deduct plan loan from global share of taxes payable to the civic body. But this was not done in the case of Delhi Vidyut Board and Delhi Jal Board, he said.

The Delhi Government's inclusion of reimbursement of actual expenditure on the 44 resettlement colonies into grants and the limit of four per cent of State's revenues on all grants to MCD was unjustified, Mr. Aggarwal asserted.

``Even the grants for education, already restricted to 60 per cent of the actual expenditure, have been further restricted. This imposition of a further upper limit of four per cent has, therefore, created an anomalous position,'' he said, adding that a request for removing this upper limit has been made.

According to Mr. Aggarwal, on the recommendation of the Delhi Finance Commission, without ascertaining MCD's views, the Delhi Government deducted Rs. 108 crores in 1998-99, Rs. 103.09 crores in 1999-2000 and Rs.105.53 crores in the current year from the MCD's global share. This further compounded their financial stringency.

With a resource gap between minimum requirement of funds and income, the MCD has requested State Government for a special loan of Rs. 156 crores with a two-year moratorium on its repayment so as to ward off the financial difficulty.

Among the new measures proposed by Mr. Aggarwal were a medicine market opposite the LNJP Hospital, installation of guide maps in different parts of the city, developing commercial plots at Azadpur for generation of additional funds, streamlining the system of road restoration cuts and improving riding quality of roads.

Steps have been initiated to introduce Unit Area Method for assessment of ratable value. To begin with it has been proposed to introduce it in unauthorised colonies. The on-going survey of properties is likely to generate Rs. 300 crore, Mr. Aggarwal hoped.

As per the revised budget estimates for 2000-2001, the total MCD income is Rs. 1620.54 crores and expenditure Rs. 1620.41 crore, while estimates for 2001-2002 stands at Rs. 1699.60 crores and Rs.1699.35 crores respectively.

According to Mr. Aggarwal, property tax continues to be the main source of MCD income, which is expected to be 58 per cent in 2000-20001 and 58.02 per cent in 2001-2002. In spite of increased income and expenditure, the MCD requires more resources.

It was also proposed to limit the constituency fund at Rs. 35 lakhs, while expenditure on works and repairs was proposed to be maintained at slight higher level.

Giving details of the expenditure, Mr. Aggarwal said that education, with 21.9 per cent share, and conservancy, with 16.66 per cent would continue to be at the top of the priority areas, followed by payment of loans, 14.92 per cent, medical relief with 8.6 per cent and roads 7.71 per cent.

Though he claimed effective control over dengue, malaria and other water borne and infectious diseases, the share of public health has been proposed to be reduced from 2.45 per cent to 2.40.

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