Defaulters pay property tax under one-time settlement scheme in Ludhiana; 25,784 paid under OTS
Between May 19 and June 30, the municipal corporation (MC) collected ₹2.42 crore in overdue taxes, giving a much-needed boost to its finances.
The scheme, which offers full or partial waivers on penalties and interest, remains open until July 31 for full benefits. After that, reduced relief will be available until Oct 31. The civic body believes the scheme could help recover a significant chunk of the estimated ₹70 crore owed by nearly one lakh remaining defaulters.
Full waiver window closes July 31
Under the OTS policy, any taxpayer who pays their entire principal property tax due — pending until March 31 — in one lump sum by July 31 will have all associated penalties and interest waived. If the payment is made between Aug 1 and Oct 31, 50% of the penalty and interest will be waived. After that, the full dues including penalties will be enforced. A senior MC official said the initiative has drawn responses from those who have not paid property tax for several years — some dating back to 2013-14.
Politics and revenue at crossroads
The timing of the scheme, just ahead of a crucial bypoll, has drawn comment from officials who say repeated tax waivers around election seasons harm the financial health of the civic body. "Every election, the department suffers," said one official on condition of anonymity. "Be it property tax or water and sewerage dues — previous govts have written these off, and it costs the system dearly.
Even during the Congress regime, similar waivers caused losses.
" Still, the scheme appears to be attracting long-time defaulters, and the civic body hopes more residents will take advantage in the coming weeks.
Mayor Inderjit Kaur appealed to residents to pay their dues and use the opportunity to settle past accounts. "The money collected under this scheme will go directly toward public welfare works," she said. Officials are optimistic that the remaining defaulters will come forward before the July 31 deadline — and that this rare chance to clear old dues won't be missed.
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