Ludhiana MC sets sights on Rs 40 crore from illegal construction fine

Tribune News Service

Harshraj Singh

Ludhiana, February 28

Illegal constructions have persisted as a significant issue in the city for an extended period. In the upcoming fiscal year, the Municipal Corporation (MC), Ludhiana, anticipates collection of Rs 40 crore in fine from violators of building regulations. Notably, the corporation approved the estimated annual Budget of Rs 990.70 crore for the fiscal year 2024-25 on Tuesday. The Budget agenda will now proceed for final approval from the government.

To achieve the revenue target of Rs 990.70 crore, the MC aims to secure Rs 40 crore from fines related to illegal constructions in the fiscal year 2024-25. Previously, the target was set at Rs 37 crore for 2023-24. From April 1 to December 31, 2023, the MC managed to collect only Rs 10.02 crore. It anticipated collecting an additional Rs 26.98 crore in fine during the last quarter (from January 1 to March 31, 2024) of the current fiscal year. Recently, officials were instructed to expedite the recovery from violators of building bylaws.

Additionally, the civic body aims to generate Rs 15 crore from change of land use charges and Rs 10 crore from building plan sanction fees in the upcoming fiscal year.

To meet the income target of Rs 990.70 crore in 2024-25, the MC also aims to acquire Rs 625 crore from the Punjab Municipal Fund, Rs 140 crore from property tax collection, Rs 60 crore from water supply and sewerage user charges, Rs 25 crore from MC’s electricity tax, Rs 4 crore from cow cess, Rs 40 crore from additional excise duty, Rs 12.5 crore from advertisements, Rs 5 crore from Tehbazari composition fees, Rs 3 crore from road cutting charges and Rs 5 crore from the sale of MC’s land.

In the revenue expenses section, the civic body highlighted in the Budget agenda that it will spend Rs 25 crore on streets and bridges, Rs 18 crore on diesel, and Rs 35 crore on the street lighting system. Additionally, under the head of capital expenditure, Rs 70 crore is allocated for street cement concrete flooring and Rs 10 crore for bitumen-based roads in the city.

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