The Hindu : New Delhi News : Major decisions likely in standing body meeting

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Tuesday, Jun 01, 2004

New Delhi

New Delhi

Major decisions likely in standing body meeting

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, MAY 31. Meeting after a long gap of more than two months, the Standing Committee of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi is expected to take several important decisions on Tuesday, which have been pending for quite some time now.

More than 75 agenda items are listed to be taken up for discussion by the Committee under the Chairmanship of Mukesh Goel, who was re-elected to the post only last week on May 25. With this meeting, top MCD officials hoped that developmental activities, which had taken a back seat for more than six months now, would start afresh.

Among the important items before the Standing Committee for necessary approval include extension of the last date for depositing property tax and availing of rebate of 15 per cent from June 30 to September 30, capping of an increase in house tax under the new Unit Area System to two and half times than the earlier tax and a proposal to widen the definition of an architect in the Unit Area Method to include registered architects.

"These are part of the on-going property tax reforms," officials said.

For the first time probably, the MCD has brought a proposal to impose tax on vacant land of sprawling farmhouses. This is because under the Unit Area Method, the property tax of farmhouses would considerably come down resulting in revenue loss to the MCD. Based on the recommendations of Municipal Valuation Committee and Hardship and Anomaly Committee, the Municipal Commissioner has proposed to impose a vacant land tax on farmhouses with the factor of 0.3 on the Unit Area value.

The Hardship Committee has recommended that farmhouses could be grouped in three categories - C, D and E - based on the basis of the Municipal Zones in which they are located. Vacant land tax has been proposed to be collected from farmhouses where the permissible covered area is very less (100 sq. m.) compared to total land area (minimum being 2.5 acres).

The Standing Committee is also expected to deliberate on proposal with regard to the categorisation of farmhouses. While, the farmhouses in South and Central Zones have been categorised into C, those in West and Najafgarh Zone into D and those in Civil Lines, Shahdara (South), Shahdara (North), Narela and Rohini Zones into E category. Among other agenda items include certification of covered area by licensed architects.

The Standing Committee would also be discussing the proposal of three times increase in cremation charges at the electric crematorium from the existing Rs. 300 to Rs. 900 per cremation in the Capital. This has been mainly due to increase in electricity tariff by the power discoms. The Commissioner would also be seeking permission to purchase about half a dozen hearse vans for the civic body.

Even though the new contract for the toll tax collection has already been awarded, the Standing Committee is likely to give its approval on Tuesday. Besides giving approval to proposals for giving recognition without aid to various primary schools, and construction and strengthening of roads across the Capital, the Committee would also be approving a number of social welfare measures like medical check-up of safai-karamcharis, purchase of text books for free distribution to school students and setting up of one integrated citizens services bureau in all the 134 Wards of the MCD.

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