Date:11/08/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/11/stories/2008081157700100.htm

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Corporation to serve special demand notices

S. Ganesan

Consequent to property tax revision, civic body to get Rs.8 crore revenue a year
Survey of some assessments to be taken up

TIRUCHI: Corporation is all set to issue revised demand notices to tax payers consequent to the property tax revision, which is expected to bring in about Rs.8 crore of additional revenue a year for the civic body.

The revised tax rates are applicable with effect from April 1, 2008. “A major portion of the work on calculating the revised tax rates for nearly 1.36 lakh residential assessments in the city has been completed and we will issue the demand notices before the end of this month,” Corporation Commissioner T.T. Balsamy told The Hindu.

The increase will be restricted to the maximum of 20 per cent (over the existing tax) for residential buildings, 75 per cent for industrial and 80 per cent for commercial buildings.

Mr. Balsamy said that the entire exercise has been computerised so as to eliminate any possibility of manipulation. The revised tax has been calculated based on the self-assessments filed by the tax-payers and in cases where the assessments have not been received the revision has been done based on the records available with the Corporation.

The fresh demand notices to be served to the tax-payers provide comprehensive details about the property, its size, the basic value and the discounts made on account of age of building. “The special notices would be self-explanatory to help tax-payers understand the calculation and make for complete transparency,” Mr. Balsamy said.

The Corporation would take up a random survey of some assessments, which have attracted abnormally low tax rates after the revision. The survey would be done directly by the Assistant Commissioners.