The online tax payment system of GHMC seems to have gone haywire. Citizens complain that a lot of serious errors have been occurring. The amount paid is being credited into the acc-ount of others, while showing tax dues in the account of original payee. Others complain of a mismatch between tax dues shown on paper and in the online system. The tax amount shown in the online data is higher than the amount in the notices received at home.
“In many cases, even the tax amount being shown in the hand-held computers being carried by GHMC bill collectors is as per old tax assessment rates. Why are taxpayers who are willing to pay the revised tax in full right now being asked to pay it later? It is an inconvenience and our budget cannot be readjusted that easily,” said G. Shankar of Ghansmandi.
A large number of taxpayers complain that the GHMC has wrongly levied unauthorised construction penalty along with property tax notices served in the last financial year. “When we filed review petitions stating our houses were leg-itimate and regularised, 25 per cent of the unauthorised construction penalty was deducted. But it is not reflected in the online data,” said Mr Prakash Rao. “I have been getting SMS to pay property tax regularly. The truth is I do not own any property in Greater Hyderabad,” says R. Venkat of Barkatpura, adding that the GHMC is harassing both the property taxpayers and those who are not covered under the tax ambit.