Mumbai: The K-East ward, which covers Andheri East, emerged as the highest property tax contributor in Mumbai for 2025–26, as the BMC recorded its highest-ever collection of Rs 7,610.9 crore.Civic data shows that K-East ward led with Rs 719.2 crore in collections, followed by G-South (Lower Parel and adjoining areas) at Rs 670.6 crore, K-West (Andheri West) at Rs 622.2 crore, H-East (Kalina and Bandra East) at Rs 577.8 crore, and H-West (Bandra West) at Rs 536.6 crore. Further, the western suburbs accounted for the largest share of collections at Rs 3,721.3 crore, followed by the island city at Rs 2,102.6 crore and eastern suburbs at Rs 1,457.4 crore.Overall, the BMC surpassed its revised target of Rs 7,341 crore, achieving 103.7% of the goal. On March 31 alone, the civic body collected Rs 399.7 crore, marking a record single-day recovery. An additional Rs 301.1 crore was collected as penalties.Officials attributed the strong performance to sustained recovery drives, targeted action against large defaulters, and improved payment systems. Civic facilitation centres remained open on weekends and public holidays, while online payment options were streamlined to encourage timely compliance.Additional municipal commissioner (city) Ashwini Joshi said to encourage timely payment, the BMC undertook extensive public awareness campaigns. “Civic facilitation centres remained open on weekends and public holidays, and online payment options were strengthened. Special focus was also placed on recovering dues from major defaulters through targeted follow-ups,” she said.Property tax continues to be the BMC’s single-largest revenue source, levied on over 10 lakh properties across Mumbai. The civic body’s dependence on this stream has deepened since 2017, when octroi — once its biggest revenue generator — was scrapped following the rollout of GST.Currently, around 3.6 lakh properties in Mumbai are exempt from property tax as their carpet area is under 500 sq ft—a policy implemented since 2022 by BMC following a state govt directive. Recently, the civic house passed a notice of motion as well seeking to increase the exemption limit for property taxes for residential units from 500 sq ft to 700 sq ft. No decision has been taken on it yet.
