BBMP to launch mobile banking facility to collect property tax

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) will have mobile banking services in all its eight zones to collect property tax.

It has also been decided to accept property tax through cheques but the receipts will be generated only after the cheque is realised. The Palike has instructed the service provider to fix the internet connectivity problem and make the tax collection drive citizen-friendly.

These decisions were taken at a meeting convened by the BBMP Taxation and Finance Committee chairperson M K Gunashekar with the bank officers on Friday in view of the complaints of bank officials misbehaving with taxpayers. The BBMP has entrusted banks with the work of collecting property tax instead of assigning the same to the revenue officers at local ward offices.

Gunashekar warned bank officers that the Palike would wind up business with such banks and withdraw its deposits from them. “We have received many complaints about bank officers misbehaving with taxpayers. Most of the complaints are against Canara Bank officials,” he said. He also had a meeting with the revenue officers of the BBMP and asked them to act tough against the big property tax defaulters.

The BBMP became richer by Rs 19 crore on Friday when Wipro Limited paid the property tax. One of its top executives Raghunathan handed over the cheque for Rs 19 crore to Gunashekar.