Waive Property Tax for Chikhli Housing Scheme Residents!

Representation by BJP MLA Mahesh Landge 

Pimpri-Chinchwad
BJP MLA Mahesh Landge has demanded that the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) waive the property tax levied on houses under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) for the economically weaker sections (EWS) in Chikhli. These houses measure 36.77 sq. m. (395.65 sq. ft.), and are meant for the poor.

A memorandum regarding this demand has been submitted to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. It states that under the JNNURM scheme, a housing project for citizens from economically weaker sections residing in urban areas was developed in Chikhli by PCMC. The site has 160 buildings, providing shelter to a total of 6,720 families.

All the residents of these homes come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and are primarily daily-wage earners. Their living conditions are very poor and underprivileged. Most of these families were earlier living in slum areas of the city. Moreover, factors such as children’s education and repayment of housing loans have placed them under severe financial strain.

According to Subsection (1) of Section 140 of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act, residential buildings or flats with a carpet area of 46.45 sq. m. (500 sq. ft.) or less should not be subject to property tax. Based on this provision, the flats provided under the EWS housing scheme in Pimpri-Chinchwad measure only 36.77 sq. m. (395.65 sq. ft.). Therefore, MLA Landge has demanded that these homes also be permanently exempted from property tax by the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation under the said provision.

Statement:
The EWS housing project is home to the city’s poor and hardworking citizens. As per the rules of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation, residential units under 500 sq. ft. are exempt from property tax. On the same lines, a demand has been made to Chief Minister Fadnavis to cancel the property tax being collected from the Chikhli housing residents by the PCMC. We will follow up on this issue with a positive and proactive approach.

– Mahesh Landge, MLA, BJP, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Pune