Collections trail net demand as financial year-end approaches
With less than a fortnight remaining in the financial year, property tax collections in Telangana’s CURE (Core Urban Region Economy) region remain just a little above one-third of the net demand. The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) said the region’s performance, while lagging the overall demand, is nevertheless an improvement over the same point last year.
Commissioner’s appeal and the OTS relief
At a media conference on Monday, GHMC Commissioner R.V. Karnan urged defaulters to avail the One Time Settlement (OTS) scheme to clear their dues. The OTS currently offers a 90% waiver on interest accruing on defaulted property tax, a significant incentive aimed at accelerating payments before the financial year closes. Officials framed the appeal as a way to ease the burden on taxpayers while improving municipal revenues.
Tri-corporation demand and interest breakdown
According to details shared by GHMC, the combined demand across the three corporations in the CURE region—the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, Cyberabad Municipal Corporation, and Malkajgiri Municipal Corporation—amounts to ₹8,734 crore in property tax. Of this, ₹3,523 crore is interest on arrears. With 90% of the interest waived under the OTS scheme, officials cited a net payable amount of ₹6,387 crore for taxpayers who settle through the programme.
Year-on-year improvement in collections
As of March 15, the tri-corporation area has collected ₹2,186 crore. This is higher than the ₹1,984 crore collected by the same date in the previous financial year, indicating some improvement in compliance and collections. Even so, the current level remains a little above one-third of the region’s net demand, underlining the push from GHMC to convert more defaulters before the fiscal year ends.
Who has paid and who remains to pay
The tax base across the tri-corporation area comprises 28.08 lakh taxpayers. Of these, 16.08 lakh have already paid their property tax, with an average payment size of ₹13,011 per taxpayer. That leaves a remaining 11.28 lakh defaulters—described as a minority by officials—who together represent a substantial portion of the outstanding amount. For this group, the average due stands at ₹56,622 per head, reflecting sizeable arrears at an individual level that collectively weigh on municipal finances.
Why CURE-region collections matter
GHMC has signalled that the outstanding dues are significant for the three corporations, making end-of-year mobilisation an operational priority. The OTS scheme’s 90% interest waiver is designed to make settlement more attractive and financially manageable, while improving the corporations’ cash flows to support civic services. The year-on-year uptick suggests the incentive structure is having some effect, but the gap to the net demand remains wide enough to warrant an intensified outreach in the final days of the fiscal.
The push in the final stretch
By spotlighting comparative performance (this year versus last) and underscoring the scale of relief available under OTS, the GHMC leadership is seeking to nudge remaining defaulters to clear arrears quickly. Officials’ messaging emphasises the dual benefit: taxpayers can significantly reduce their interest burden, and the corporations can shore up critical revenues at a time when budgets and year-end targets are under scrutiny.
The numbers at a glance
- Total property tax demand (tri-corporation area): ₹8,734 crore
- Interest on arrears within that demand: ₹3,523 crore
- Net payable under OTS (with 90% interest waived): ₹6,387 crore
- Collections up to March 15 this year: ₹2,186 crore
- Collections up to March 15 last year: ₹1,984 crore
- Total taxpayers: 28.08 lakh; Paid: 16.08 lakh; Defaulters: 11.28 lakh
- Average paid per taxpayer: ₹13,011; Average due per defaulter: ₹56,622
What remains to be clarified
While GHMC has provided a robust snapshot of demand, interest, and collections, some details remain unspecified in the available report text. The timeframe for the OTS scheme’s availability was not detailed, beyond officials urging taxpayers to utilise it with the financial year’s end fast approaching. Additionally, a reference to uptake figures was truncated in the text provided, leaving unclear the exact count of property owners who have so far availed the scheme in the tri-corporation area.
Bottom line
The GHMC’s message is clear: with collections still only a little above one-third of the net demand across the CURE region, the 90% interest waiver under the OTS scheme is the principal lever to convert pending arrears before March-end. Year-on-year gains point to progress, but the substantial average dues among the 11.28 lakh remaining defaulters underscore the scale of the task in the final stretch of the financial year.