Hyderabad:The state government on Tuesday announced a one-time settlement (OTS) scheme for state departments to clear long-pending property tax arrears and water cess dues amounting to ₹5,864.92 crore in the newly formed Greater Hyderabad, Cyberabad and Malkajgiri municipal corporations and the HMWS&SB jurisdiction. The government has decided to settle dues amounting to ₹1,686.39 crore towards property tax arrears within one year under the OTS scheme by providing 100 per cent waiver of accumulated interest and penalties.
According to GO Rt. No. 550 issued by the metropolitan area and urban development department special chief secretary Jayesh Ranjan on Tuesday, the total property tax dues of government properties across GHMC, CMC and MMC stood at ₹5,864.92 crore, including arrears, interest and current tax liabilities. Of this, GHMC alone accounted for ₹5,612.04 crore, while dues to the Cyberabad Municipal Corporation (CMC) dues stood at ₹52.75 crore and to the Malkajgiri Municipal Corporation (MMC) at ₹200.13 crore. Under the OTS scheme, the government will pay only the principal tax arrears, while all accumulated interest and penalties will be waived automatically upon payment.
The government said the move was aimed at improving the financial health of urban local bodies in the core urban region, enhancing revenue realisation and reducing litigation and disputes related to pending tax dues. The scheme is expected to streamline reconciliation through the CURE platform and strengthen the cash flow position of the three municipal corporations.
The order also addressed huge pending water cess dues payable to HMWS&SB by 36 state government departments. The dues, including interest, amounted to ₹2,739.15 crore, while adjustments of ₹2,416.31 crore were due towards subsidies and services provided by the board, including to double-bedroom housing schemes. The government approved adjustment of these dues against loans of ₹12,707.67 crore extended by the government to the HMWS&SB.
The government stated that HMWS&SB was undertaking massive investments in water supply augmentation, sewage treatment plants and infrastructure expansion across the Hyderabad metropolitan region to meet rising urban demand, and settlement of pending dues would help improve its financial sustainability.
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