HYDERABAD: For the first time in its history, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has surpassed the ₹2,000 crore mark in property tax collection. Against the target of ₹1,970.10 crore set for the 2024–25 financial year, the civic body has collected ₹2,038.42 crore in property tax revenue.
Officials stated that if all 19.49 lakh assessments within GHMC limits had paid in full, collections could have touched ₹3,000 crore.
Only 14.08 Lakh Properties Paid
Out of 19.49 lakh properties assessed within GHMC jurisdiction, 16.35 lakh are residential, 2.80 lakh non-residential, and 34,000 mixed-use. As of 31 March, only 14,08,218 assessments had made payments, yielding ₹2,038.42 crore in tax. Around 5.41 lakh properties have yet to pay any property tax.
GHMC is divided into six zones and 30 circles. Among these, the Khairatabad zone recorded the highest collection, generating ₹530.09 crore from 2,20,763 assessments. The Charminar zone posted the lowest, collecting ₹150.44 crore from 1,63,869 assessments.
At the circle level, Serilingampally led with ₹288.14 crore from 1,05,837 taxpayers. Falaknuma circle had 19,793 taxpayers contributing ₹12.51 crore. Other high-performing circles included Jubilee Hills with ₹190.68 crore, Khairatabad with ₹173.65 crore, Chandanagar with ₹109.61 crore, Moosapet with ₹107.27 crore, and Begumpet with ₹99.27 crore.
Massive Arrears Despite Exceeding Target
Despite surpassing its annual target, GHMC faces a significant backlog of property tax arrears. Authorities revealed that taxes are yet to be collected from 6.34 lakh properties, with total dues amounting to ₹10,000 crore.
Of this, ₹1,168 crore in arrears has been pending for the past 15 years. A major portion—₹5,500 crore—is owed by buildings owned by the central and state governments, while private institutions account for ₹4,500 crore.
The state government alone owes ₹5,000 crore from 4,000 of its buildings, while the central government owes ₹500 crore from 600 buildings. Notably, officials stated that none of the government departments have availed the One-Time Settlement (OTS) scheme announced by the government.
