GCC collects Rs 1,300 crore tax, around Rs 350 cr higher than last year

CHENNAI: According to Chennai Corporation data, as much as Rs. 1,297.70 crore has been collected during the year, of which property tax alone amounts to Rs. 778.07 crore. Also, Rs. 462.35 crore has been collected as professional tax. Between April 1 and September 30 (first half of the fiscal) alone, the civic body collected Rs 375 crore and Rs 225 crore as property tax and professional tax respectively.

In the 2020-2021 financial year, the civic body collected only Rs 959.34 crore, of which Rs. 471.66 crore was property tax. The tax revenue generated during the previous year was the lowest in the last six years. It may be noted that the civic body spends around Rs. 1,500 per year to pay salaries and pensions.

“On the last day (March 31), around Rs 50 crore property tax was collected by sealing the defaulted buildings. After the Covid, the tax collection has started increasing,” an official said.

Apart from property tax and professional tax, which are the major contributors, the civic body also had collected Rs. 20.51 crore through trade licenses and Rs. 14.27 crore as entertainment tax. As much as Rs 20.78 crore and Rs 1.72 crore have been collected as rents from shopping complexes and company tax respectively.

It may be recalled that the civic body collected Rs. 1,000 crore as property tax in the 2018-2019 financial year, which is the highest one-year collection. In the same year, total tax revenue crossed Rs. 1,470 crore.

Meanwhile, the official said that the property owners, who pay their property tax (for the first half-year) before April 15 will get 5 per cent incentive up to a maximum of Rs. 5,000. Owners missing the last date would have to pay up 2 per cent penalty.