Hyderabad: Villagers feel the tax pinch

Hyderabad: Rural people living in villages which were merged to create new municipalities recently, have started to feel the pinch of taxes. All taxes, barring the property tax will be imposed from September.

About 173 villages have been upgraded to form 38 new municipalities. Besides another 131 villages have been merged into existing municipalities and corporations.

The state government has issued directions to municipal corporations and municipalities to start collecting taxes from people living in these villages, which were upgraded, barring only the property tax.

The government promised to exempt upgraded villages from property tax for two years to pacify the residents. The local people had earlier agitated against the upgradation of their villages to new municipalities. 

The government has directed the urban local bodies to collect taxes on vacant plots/ lands, water charges, market cess, slaughter house fee, building approval charges, rents on municipal buildings/ complexes, town planning fees, mutation fees, trade licence fees, entertainment tax and surcharge on stamp duty. The government asked municipal commissioners to prescribe fees and taxes as per the new Municipal Act in these villages. They were asked to collect 0.22 per cent of market value on vacant lands/plots.

The government asked municipal commissioners to fix water charges separately for domestic and commercial purpose. Villagers, who were getting drinking water for free all these years, will now be forced to pay Rs 30 to Rs 100 per month for domestic use and Rs 250 to Rs 750 for commercial use.

The government asked municipal commissioners to prescribe the amount of taxes and fees as per the decisions taken in the municipal council meeting. The villagers also lost the benefit of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act with the upgradation of these villages into Panchayats. Earlier, they used to get a minimum of Rs 200 per day for assured employment of 100 days.