PMC to auction 2,000 properties to recover ₹200 crore in unpaid property taxes

With total property tax dues exceeding ₹10,000 crore, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) plans to auction 2,000 properties to recover at least ₹200 crore in unpaid property taxes. The move comes despite a similar auction last year seeing poor response. Madhav Jagtap, deputy commissioner of the income tax department, shared that over the past year, the PMC has sealed 2,600 properties not involved in legal disputes with 2,000 now set for auction before March 2025.

By the end of December 2024, the PMC’s property tax revenue has reached ₹1,870 crore. The department is tasked with collecting ₹2,727 crore for the financial year 2024-25, leaving ₹800 crore still to be recovered. However, the suspension of property tax collection from the 34 villages merged with the PMC owing to the recent state assembly elections is expected to cost the PMC ₹400 to ₹500 crore in revenue. To offset this, the focus has shifted to recovering dues from properties within the city.

Jagtap said, “Just three months left for the financial year, and the department faces a challenge of recovering ₹850 crore. The suspension of tax collection in the 32 newly added villages is expected to cause a loss of ₹300 crore. To address this, the department has intensified efforts to recover arrears.”

“Since December 2, the PMC has recovered ₹52.25 crore from 449 property owners through special recovery drives, including playing bands to highlight defaulters. Around 2,500 properties have been sealed, and if taxes are not paid on time, these will be auctioned. The evaluation of these properties is currently underway,” he said.

Special auction team

A dedicated team has been formed to handle the auction process which will be responsible for evaluating property prices, issuing auction notices, and organising the auction.

Last year, the PMC aimed for 100% recovery of tax arrears and sent notices to defaulters. When many failed to respond, these properties were seized. Out of 202 seized properties, 32 were listed for auction with total arrears of ₹16 crore and a market value of ₹200 crore. Among these, two properties belonging to the PAN Card Club had arrears of ₹12.13 crore while the remaining 30 properties owed ₹4.25 crore. As the auction date neared, 22 property owners cleared ₹1.96 crore in dues, but no bids were received for the remaining eight properties.

A senior official from the property tax department said, “The auction helps recover some dues as certain defaulters pay up. However, many others remain indifferent. Additionally, there is often little response from bidders, making the process time-consuming and costly for the PMC.”