PIMPRI CHINCHWAD: The Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) has served two notices to Punarutthan Samarasata Gurukulam Sanstha, an NGO run by Padma Shri awardee Girish Prabhune, to recover Rs 2.98 crore property tax dues.
Assistant municipal commissioner Smita Zagade said, “The notices were served on January 13 to the NGO and 324 other property owners, who have run dues worth over Rs25 lakh each. Two notices have been served to the NGO, one for Rs1.21 crore property tax dues payable by the NGO and another of Rs1.77 crore on the primary and secondary schools constructed by the NGO.”
She added, “Further action on the notices will be taken after municipal commissioner, who is on leave, resumes duty on February 4.”
When contacted, Prabhune told TOI, “We are working selflessly towards the upliftment of the Pardhi community children and the notices can really be demotivating. All our construction is mostly bamboo-based. How can they levy a tax on such construction? We had communicated this to the civic body earlier as well.”
Zagade said, “The NGO owes dues from 2006 and a school constructed in 2016 too owes dues. We never got a formal request from them about the construction or regularization of the school. If they have any documents, they should have produced it.”