Civic staff asked to conduct recoveries in initial months

Ludhiana: Instead of waiting for the last few months for conducting recovery drives, MC officials have been directed to start working on recovery drives in the initial months as well. On Tuesday, MC commissioner KP Brar has issued a letter to all zonal commissioners in which targets have been fixed for officials from property tax and water supply and sewerage dues.
Usually, officials pay attention towards the recovery of pending dues in the past three months of any financial year, due to which it becomes difficult to catch hold of defaulters. Therefore this time, zone-wise targets have been set by MC commissioner, and zonal commissioners have been told to complete these targets. The maximum target is set for the areas coming under Zone D. From property tax as well as water supply and sewerage dues, officials will recover Rs100 crore in both the sections.

MC commissioner Brar, while confirming the same, said: “Though this year, we have achieved 85% of the targets, especially from property tax, we need to achieve 100%, so that in the very beginning, officials can start recoveries.” She said every zone had been given a target, and officials would have to achieve them, with no excuses of shortage of staff or duties for other works.

In the letter, it is mentioned that from Zone A, Rs16.60 crore; from Zone B, Rs24.5 crore; from Zone C, Rs16.75 crore, and from Zone D, Rs42.15 crore will be recovered in 2019-20. Similarly, from water supply and sewerage dues, officials will recover Rs20 crore each from zones A and C, and Rs30 crore each from zones B and D. The officials have also been asked to recover outstanding house tax, which is somewhere around Rs7.26 crore. Before imposition of property tax, MC used to recover house tax, and from some of the defaulters, house tax is still pending.