State Urban Affairs Minister Ashok Singhal proposes collecting property tax in proportion to GDP growth
Assam’s Urban Affairs Minister, Ashok Singhal, announced on March 14 that property taxes in the state will be collected based on the proportionate growth of Assam’s GDP. Singhal made this announcement during the ongoing Budget Session as an answer to a zero-hour notice from Congress member Kamalakhya Dey Purkayastha.
Singhal said that the property tax rates would be determined based on the state’s GDP growth under the reformed property tax collection system. He also mentioned the different property tax rates levied by various districts in the state. Singhal stated that the local self-government bodies would set the property tax rates in each municipality area at their discretion, and the state government has no role in this. Singhal added that the non-assessment of property taxes had led to a financial crisis for municipal bodies, and each municipality board should collect property taxes in proportion to GDP growth. Additionally, the state government will establish waste disposal plants in each of the 102 municipality areas using bio-mining to treat, process and rehabilitate legacy wastes.
