NEW DELHI: The state government of Assam has decided to hand over the responsibility of collecting property tax to a third party. Four towns under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), namely, Guwahati, Nagaon, Dibrugarh, and Silchar, will be part of a step considered to provide financial empowerment to the urban local bodies in the state. The process is at no additional cost to the municipal bodies and will not enhance the existing tax rates for the citizens.
Property tax is the largest share of the revenue for Urban Local Bodies. Due to poor collection of property tax and constrained by low coverage, the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) and the Municipal Boards of the other three do not have any mechanism to identify tax defaulters and collect tax. Inspired by the model engaged in Ranchi, Chhattisgarh, Patna, and many more, which has resulted in the enhancement of revenue collection fourfold in three years, the Assam Cabinet has decided to imply as a progressive measure in June 2022.