NAGPUR: The property tax revenue of the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) has seen a decline in 2025-26, despite a continuous increase in the number of properties, highlighting serious compliance and recovery issues. To date, the NMC has collected Rs252.66 crore, a marked decrease from Rs306 crore gathered in 2024-25, where they achieved 94% of their Rs325 crore target.
This reduction comes even with the total property count rising to 836,842, indicating that revenue growth is lagging behind property expansion. Alarmingly, only 460,094 property owners have settled their taxes, leaving 376,000 properties either in default or outside the tax system.
Property tax constitutes the largest portion of revenue for the NMC, making this shortfall a significant concern for the financially-struggling civic body. For 2025-26, the department originally set a goal of Rs350 crore, which was later adjusted to Rs400 crore, consequently widening the gap between anticipated and actual revenue collections.
Officials have connected part of the slowdown to the civic election cycle, which disrupted regular recovery efforts during peak collection months. Most zonal teams were redirected to election preparations in December and January, impacting their enforcement capabilities.
“In January 2024, the NMC collected about Rs30 crore, but this year it plummeted to only Rs6 crore,” an official reported.
From the total collection thus far, Rs248.11 crore stems from property tax, while Rs84.86 lakh has been obtained through NEFT/RTGS, and Rs3.70 crore via mutation fees. Zone-wise analysis shows inconsistent performance and insufficient enforcement across the city.
In Laxmi Nagar, 62,437 taxpayers from 93,402 properties contributed Rs33.27 crore, while Dharampeth followed with 33,872 payers and Rs22.02 crore in recovery. Nevertheless, nearly one in three property owners in these zones has failed to pay.
The situation is dire in critical areas like Ashi Nagar, which houses the highest number of properties (153,000) but only 52,814 taxpayers, leading to a disappointing 34% compliance rate and Rs21.04 crore recovery. Nehru Nagar, with over 130,000 properties, reported only 74,697 taxpayers, yielding Rs28.84 crore, revealing a significant revenue gap.
Zones like Satranjipura, Gandhibagh, Lakadganj, and Hanuman Nagar continue to hover around a 50-60% compliance rate, highlighting a systemic failure in tax collection mechanisms.
