Date:01/10/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/10/01/stories/2008100159960300.htm

Tamil Nadu

Tirupur Corpn. defers property tax increase

Staff Reporter

Following stiff opposition from various parties at council meeting

Photo: M. Balaji

Opposing the move: CPI (M) councillors protesting against the proposal to increase property tax, at the Corporation council meeting in Tirupur on Tuesday. —

Tirupur: The Corporation deferred the decision to increase property tax rates following stiff opposition from various parties in the council meeting here on Tuesday.

Mayor K Selvaraj said the administration would now request the State Government to take a decision, since the councillors were divided on the issue for the third consecutive meeting.

G. Savithri of CPI (M) expressed her party’s concern over the proposal to increase property tax for residential, industrial and commercial edifices by 25 percent, 100 percent and 150 percent, respectively.

She pointed out that any move to heighten the slab would cause enormous problems to middle and lower classes of society, already overburdened by inflation.

“Once the property taxes are raised, rentals of buildings will go up proportionally,” she said.

The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam councillors too aired similar views.

They asked the Mayor to explore ways to improve tax collection with the existing slab rates instead of passing the burden on the residents.

All the 18 AIADMK councillors then walked out of the meeting hall to protest against the erratic supply of drinking water in the majority of the wards and the frequent load shedding in the region.

They alleged that the administration was not keen on solving the problems of the common man.

S. Parameswari (Ward 20) of MDMK came down heavily on the administration for not taking action against dyeing units in her ward for disposing of effluents indiscriminately, polluting the groundwater table.

“It is indeed a pity that the administration did not penalize the defaulters despite many appeals from the residents of the ward,” she said.

Corporation Commissioner M Ashokan and Deputy Mayor Senthil Kumar, were present.