The Hindu Business Line : Pune builders seek reduction in realty taxes

Pune, Jan. 9 The municipal corporation here has nullified the affordability factor brought in by reduction of interest rates and levies of material by hiking premiums, said the President of Promoters and Builders Association of Pune.

“The recent proactive measures by the Central Government and the Reserve Bank of India in reducing interest rates and levies of material had brought in affordability in housing for consumers. But the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has increased the burden on home buyers by increasing the various premiums collected by them from customers through the developers,” Mr Lalit Kumar Jain said while talking to journalists.

The President of Promoters and Builders Association of Pune (PBAP) said the premiums have seen a compounded annual growth rate of 130 per cent for the past four years, and today, for a residential development, the customer paid over Rs 150 a sq ft on various premiums to the PMC.

He noted that on April 2004, the calculation on FSI was Rs 1,000 for A Zone, Rs 1,250 for B Zone, Rs 750 for C Zone and Rs 500 for D Zone. In May 2007, the corresponding figures were Rs 4,000, Rs 4,500, Rs 2,600 and Rs 2,000.

Charge hiked

Recently the PMC had unilaterally raised excavation charges for laying cables under roads from Rs 1,200 for every running meter to Rs 4,600 he said.

The Standing Committee of the PMC on Tuesday had approved a proposal to charge a fee for laying underground cables.