HYDERABAD: The financially challenged Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has identified over 100,000 property owners who collectively evaded taxes exceeding Rs 100 crore due to prolonged under-assessment of their properties. This discovery was made during a GIS-based survey conducted from August 2024 to December 2025, utilizing drone imagery and high-resolution mapping.
More than six lakh properties were evaluated as part of this survey. The results indicated that most under-assessed properties are located in rapidly urbanized areas such as Serilingampally, Chandanagar, Moosapet, Kukatpally, and LB Nagar, all of which have seen significant commercial and residential development in recent years.
An official explained, “This situation largely arose between 2020 and 2023 when the GHMC permitted self-assessment of properties and ceased issuing notices under Section 213 of the GHMC Act, 1955. This section mandates property owners to provide detailed information regarding plinth area, usage types, and building plans for assessment or re-assessment of property tax. The change in rules led to many property owners failing to provide updated details or disclose modifications made to their properties.”
Officials noted that many of these properties are commercial buildings or rental complexes with multiple tenants. While owners received rent from various occupants, they only reported a few units for taxation purposes. “In numerous cases, owners transformed residential buildings into commercial spaces without updating official records. There are instances where permissions for warehouses were obtained, but the spaces are used for retail, allowing owners to pay lower taxes,” an official stated.
They suspect the actual number of tax defaulters could be considerably higher. “There are approximately 2 million properties under GHMC jurisdiction. Although over 100,000 under-assessed properties have been identified from six lakh verifications, this number is likely to grow as the city-wide survey progresses,” said Anurag Jayanthi, Additional Commissioner (IT & Revenue), GHMC. He added, “We have been issuing notices to the defaulters requesting them to clear their dues.”
Discrepancies
The discrepancies revealed by the GIS survey showed significant deviations from approved building plans versus the actual structures. The survey uncovered numerous buildings raising residential floors without proper approvals or underreporting plinth areas. For example, owners of large commercial properties, often exceeding 10,000 square feet, declared them as residential properties and paid taxes for only 3,000 to 3,500 square feet. “A property that should ideally pay between Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 annually was only paying around Rs 5,000, resulting in substantial revenue loss,” an official from the taxation wing noted.
Power Data Integration
In a significant step forward, the GHMC has integrated Property Tax Identification Number (PTIN) data with electricity service connections from TGSPDCL, enabling officials to cross-verify property usage and occupancy patterns. This integration has led to the identification of many under-assessed properties throughout Hyderabad. So far, 14,999 properties have undergone field verification, resulting in additional revenue collection of Rs 7.40 crore. As verification continues, officials expect a substantial increase in revenue recovery.
