Prayagraj: In a major relief to property owners seeking mutation of buildings in urban areas, the Prayagraj Municipal Corporation (PMC) House has decided to cap the delay fee at Rs 1,000, irrespective of the duration of delay in mutation.The House on Thursday changed its earlier decision to charge Rs 500 every month as a delay fee. The move is expected to benefit around 20,000 building owners in the city.Earlier, following a resolution passed by the House, a delay fee of Rs 500 per month was being charged for late mutation of properties. Several property owners had objected to the provision, while councillors had also opposed the monthly charge. The arrangement particularly caused problems for owners who approached the civic body for mutation several years after acquiring or occupying a property. In some cases, they were asked to pay delay charges of up to Rs 2 lakh.The municipal corporation had prepared a proposal to amend the provision by replacing the delay fee of Rs 500 per month with an annual charge of Rs 1,000. However, councillors Shivsevak Singh, Kamlesh Tiwari, Bhola Tiwari, Vinay Mishra and Anupama Pandey, among others, opposed the proposal.Kamlesh Tiwari said that except Ghaziabad, no other municipal corporation in the state was charging a delay fee for mutation. After hearing the suggestions of the councillors, the chairperson directed that mutation be allowed on payment of only Rs 1,000 as a delay fee. The resolution was subsequently passed accordingly.Meanwhile, the PMC is also planning to provide relief to property tax defaulters from the burden of compound interest. Under the ongoing one-time settlement scheme, 100% interest on outstanding house tax as well as water and sewer dues has already been waived.On Friday, the mini House approved a proposal to end compound interest on house tax arrears and, if approved, defaulters will have to pay only 12% interest on the outstanding amount.Chief tax assessment officer Sanjay Mamgai said that for one year of house tax arrears, the civic body currently charges 12% interest along with an additional 1% interest every month. This effectively results in compound interest, a system that is not followed by other municipal corporations. Under the system, if house tax remains unpaid for one year, only 12% interest will be payable. Even if the dues remain unpaid for two years, the 12% interest will be charged on the outstanding amount, without any additional compound interest.
