Taxes on houses and commercial properties in Ghaziabad hiked

GHAZIABAD - Public anger and protest have been building up against a steep 50 percent hike in house tax in Ghaziabad.

The Uttar Pradesh government in a gazette notification Thursday also raised the tax on commercial properties in the city by 200 percent.

Residents and local councillors cutting across party lines Friday said they would not allow municipal employees to collect the taxes from their respective wards.

“We are opposing the imposition of tax mainly on two grounds. One ground is that the UP government, while issuing notification/ order, has bypassed the municipal board which is illegal. Every policy would have to be implemented only after it was approved by the board but in this case the taxes have been raised arbitrarily by the bureaucrats in Lucknow in violation of of the municipal corporation act 1959,” Rajendra Tyagi, councillor.

Secondly, the house tax is too high and “unbearable” for residents. And the increase in commercial property tax will hamper business activities in the city, he added.