Central funds were stopped in absence of Property Tax
*Dev, poverty alleviation, social welfare sectors to benefit
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Feb 26: The National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog and the Union Ministries have agreed to release all grants to the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) which had been blocked for last four years ever since elections were held to Municipalities in the absence of imposition of Property Tax in Jammu and Kashmir.
“The grants will now become an annual feature,” official sources told the Excelsior.
“A number of Central grants running into hundreds of crores of rupees were not being released to Municipal Corporations, Municipal Councils and Municipal Committees of Jammu and Kashmir since the new bodies were constituted in January 2019 after elections were held to them in October-November 2018,” sources said.
The grants pertained to different schemes being executed by the Municipalities for development, sanitation, poverty alleviation, social welfare etc
The grants, as per the sources, were linked to imposition of Property Tax in Jammu and Kashmir. The administration repeatedly took up the issue with NITI Aayog as well as concerned Ministries which deal with the grants but there was no headway as imposition of Property Tax was made mandatory for release of the grants.
“However, now since Jammu and Kashmir has implemented Property Tax, the grants would start pouring in from April 1, 2023,” sources said, adding the NITI Aayog as well as concerned Ministries have indicated that the funds blocked for last four years could also be released for Municipalities of the UT.
The Municipalities might not earn much from Property Tax but they will benefit from the Central grants which were blocked due to non-imposition of the tax, they said.
All other States and Union Territories which have already implemented Property Tax were being released these Central grants uninterruptedly.
Election to Municipalities were held in Jammu and Kashmir in October-November 2018 along with Panchayats during the Governor’s Rule. The Municipal elections were held after a gap of 13 years.
However, some of the grants to Urban Local Bodies linked to implementation of Property Tax were not released from 2019-2023 but with implementation of the tax the funds not only for 2023 but last four years could also be released, sources said.
Both Urban and Rural Local Bodies will complete their five-year term by the end of this year and elections will become due to them in October-November just like they were held in 2018.
In October 2020, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had empowered the J&K administration to impose Property Taxes through the Municipal Corporations, Municipal Councils and Municipal Committees in the Union Territory.
The MHA had issued several amendments in the Jammu and Kashmir Municipal Act, 2000 and Jammu and Kashmir Municipal Corporation Act, 2000 carried through the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization (Adaptation of State Laws) Order, 2020.
Erstwhile State of J&K also had provisions to impose Property Tax in the laws enacted by the then Legislature.
The MHA had substituted Sections 72 to 80 and now Section 72 states in the previous Acts of 2000.
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