PUNE: The Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) decided on Tuesday to grant a 50% discount on the general tax for properties located in the red zone, starting from the next financial year. This move has sparked protests from numerous housing societies.
The proposal for the tax waiver was approved in the PCMC’s standing committee and general body meetings. A senior official from the property tax department stated that the decision, effective April 1, 2026, pertains only to property owners who settle all outstanding dues.
Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Commissioner Shekhar Singh explained to TOI that the civic body currently struggles to provide adequate facilities like schools and sports venues to residents in the red zone. Thus, a tax concession was being considered. “Residents will receive a 50% waiver on the general tax component of their property tax bills,” he shared.
More than 43,000 properties near Dehu Road Ordnance Depot and Dighi Magazine Depot are classified within the red zone. Officials note that a 2,000-yard radius around Dehu Road Ordnance Depot and a 1,200-yard radius around Dighi Magazine Depot are deemed red zones, where construction activities are prohibited under the Works of Defence Act, 1903.
Avinash Shinde, assistant municipal commissioner and head of the property tax department at PCMC, indicated that the waiver applies to non-residential properties, including over 3,000 industrial units operating in Talawade, which are also within the red zone.
While the municipality hopes to recover long-overdue dues from property owners in the red zone, housing societies have voiced strong opposition. “This is unfair to those who consistently pay their taxes. We also lack adequate facilities from the municipal corporation, despite our tax contributions,” stated Sanjeevan Sangle, chairman of the Chikhali-Moshi Pimpri Chinchwad Housing Societies Federation, following a letter he sent to the municipal commissioner.
Sangle expressed that providing discounts for properties in the red zone seemed to endorse unauthorized constructions, as many of these structures are illegal.
