HYDERABAD: The Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB) is using drones to identify illegal structures based on which property assessments will be made to boost tax collections.
SCB CEO B. Ajith Reddy believes that deploying drones will help the SCB find illegal properties as well as bring all buildings under the ambit of tax and track down tax evaders. At a meeting led by Ajith Reddy, the SCB decided to take action against any illegal constructions that had sprouted up in recent years.
"We are conducting a drone survey of the cantonment, and 20 per cent of it is complete. The survey began on July 22 and is expected to be completed by August 15. We’ll map every property within the cantonment. The survey will also assist us in locating property owners who have been evading taxes and will soon be brought under the tax bracket,” he said adding that paying property tax will neither regularise or legalise any type of unauthorised constructions.
Landowners are only permitted to build structures with a maximum height of two storeys under the Cantonment Act. When questioned about buildings that have been constructed in contravention of building bylaws and have more than three floors, he stated that they are the older buildings where an action has been initiated. “Notices have already been served to them. In fact, building regulations have been relaxed a few months back,” he informed.
Meanwhile, on the serious water shortage issue that the residents have been experiencing for more than three months, Ajith Reddy noted that the SCB heavily relies on the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board for its water supply and is not entirely responsible for it.
"We have no control over the water supply. In order to reduce our reliance on Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply, we have proposed a few projects. We are exploring the possibility of directly drawing water from the Godavari river, reducing our need on the Krishna River. We aim to begin this project by the end of the month after approvals from appropriate authorities, " Ajith Reddy said.
