Kolkata, 08 August (H.S.) : The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is facing fresh financial concerns as its property tax collection declined by more than Rs 13 crore during the first five months of the current financial year compared with the corresponding period last year.

According to KMC data, the civic body collected Rs 716.63 crore in property tax between April 1 and August 6 of the 2025-26 financial year. During the same period of the current financial year, 2026-27, the collection stood at Rs 703.62 crore.

This represents a decline of Rs 13.01 crore, a trend that has raised concerns among senior civic officials. Some officials said they could not recall the last time property tax collection across the city had fallen to such a level during the corresponding period.

The decline has been particularly significant in several parts of the city. The Assessment Collection (AC) North division recorded a 7.66 per cent fall in collection compared with the first five months of the previous financial year.

The AC South division registered a 4.40 per cent increase, but civic officials described the growth as modest. The Tolly Tax Division (TTD) in the Gariahat area recorded a 6.85 per cent decline.

Property tax collection also fell by 15.37 per cent in Borough 11 and 8.25 per cent in Borough 12. The South Suburban Unit covering Jadavpur recorded a decline of 3.43 per cent, while Garden Reach and Joka registered decreases of 2.91 per cent and 8.60 per cent, respectively.

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Civic Staff Deployed for Other Government Work

A section of civic officials believes that the diversion of property tax department personnel to other government-related activities may have contributed to the decline in revenue collection.

Officials said employees from the property tax department have been engaged in tasks related to schemes such as Ayushman Bharat and Annapurna Yojana, besides census-related work. This, they believe, may have affected the department’s primary responsibility of property tax collection.

Smita Pandey was appointed Municipal Commissioner and administrator of the civic body following the change in the state government. Incidentally, property tax collection began showing a downward trend from May.

However, Pandey said there was still considerable time left before the end of the financial year and expressed confidence that revenue collection would improve over the coming months.

“Public service-related government work has to be carried out. The work related to these schemes will be completed soon. I am hopeful that property tax collection will increase over the next few months,” the civic administrator said.

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Property Tax Arrears Around Rs 1,300 Crore

The KMC is already facing a significant burden of outstanding property taxes. According to civic officials, various government, semi-government and private properties owe around Rs 1,300 crore in property tax arrears.

Officials in the civic body’s finance department fear that the decline in property tax revenue, coupled with the existing arrears, could create difficulties in meeting salary obligations in the coming months.

The KMC has around 16,000 permanent employees and 22,000 contractual or temporary workers. The state government bears around 80 per cent of the salary expenditure of permanent employees, while the remaining 20 per cent is borne by the civic body.

However, the corporation has to bear the entire salary expenditure of its temporary workforce.

Against this backdrop, the decline in one of the KMC’s principal sources of revenue has added to concerns over the civic body’s already strained financial position.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh