Pune: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) faces a significant challenge in achieving its ₹2,700 crore property tax revenue target. To meet this goal, the tax assessment and collection department has canceled employees’ leaves until the end of March. However, the department’s Deputy Commissioner, Madhav Jagtap, has gone on leave, sparking discussions. Notably, no interim officer has been assigned his responsibilities, raising concerns about whether the revenue target will be achieved with only 10-12 days left in the financial year.
Property tax is one of the primary sources of revenue for the PMC. The municipal budget for 2024-25 estimates ₹2,700 crore in revenue from property tax collections, with ₹2,151 crore collected so far. The property tax department claims that revenue has been impacted due to a state government directive preventing action against defaulters in newly merged villages ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
To address the shortfall, the department has instructed employees to collect dues from at least 10 property owners daily. Additionally, all employees’ leaves have been cancelled until the end of March. However, with only 13 days left in the financial year, meeting the revenue target remains a challenge—further complicated by the fact that the department’s head is on leave.
Meanwhile, as the financial year-end approaches, the number of property owners attempting to pay their dues has increased. However, the tax department’s server has been down for the past 12 days, bringing tax collection to a halt. Repeated server failures have caused inconvenience for both employees and citizens attempting to pay their taxes.
