The District Administration has begun issuing notices to clubs and other institutions who have defaulted on the land lease amount payable to the State Government.
Though notices have been issued over the past few years to various such institutions, only a few have remitted the outstanding amounts, while the rest have approached the courts. The total outstanding amount from various such institutions is anywhere between ₹40 to 50 crore, according to district administration officials.
Land in prominent locations have been leased out to several institutions over the past many years. Some of these are for longer lease periods of around 30 years, while others are short term leases. As per the norms, a lease amount equivalent to 2% of the market value of a similar piece of land in the same locality has to be remitted if it is a charity institution. In case of commercial institutions and clubs, the lease amount is 5% of the market value.
In the latest such instance, a notice was issued to the Mannam Memorial National Club near Statue last week, as it had defaulted on the lease amount which now has added up to ₹5 crore.
“We have issued the notice last week. It seems they have approached the Government regarding this. The next step will be taken as per the Government’s directions,” said District Collector K.Vasuki.
Revenue recovery
According to a district administration official, steps including revenue recovery can be taken if the institution fails to pay the lease amount in time. The Government as well as the local bodies like the city Corporation have been struggling to find enough land for various purposes including housing projects and government offices within the city.
Among those who are yet to pay the lease amounts, and against whom notices have been issued in recent years are Trivandrum Tennis Club (₹7.5 crore pending), Sreemolam club (₹60.8 lakh) and YMCA (₹2.4 crore).