BMC Budget 2025: Rs 74,427 crore; property tax on commercial slums
By Brena Soni
MUMBAI : Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) presents an approximate budget of Rs 74,427 crore for the fiscal year 2025-2026 as an administrator by the Municipal Commissioner due to no elections held of corporators since the last term completion in the year 2017.
Asia’s richest civic body presented its budget for the year fiscal year 2025- 2026. This is the first budget of municipal commissioner Bhushan Gagrani which is presented as an administrator.
The important aspect of the urban city are its connectivity of roads which is a challenge for every commuter over which budget report states that approximately it has 1,333 km roads concretised till now and it is divided into phases and 75% of phase 1 and 50% of phase 2 is proposed to be completed before June 2025. Soon after the release of the budget leaders in the government praised it while opposition raised concerns on it.
Over this Samajwadi Party MLA Rais Shaikh said,”Strongly oppose property tax on commerical units in slums and SWM user fee, We will not allow its implementation at any cost.BMC admits financial mismanagement, proposes to break FDs of Rs 30,357 crores, it is sign of impending financial crisis.
“While the BMC has granted a property tax waiver for people with an area of up to 500 sq ft, it is now taxing the poorest of the poor through property tax and the SWM user fee, which is highly unacceptable. There is complete mismanagement of the BMC’s finances due to the siphoning of funds and corruption under the guise of various infrastructure projects. We strongly oppose the property tax on commercial units in slums and the SWM user fee. We will not allow its implementation,” said Rais Shaikh, SP MLA.
“We welcome the move this budget as it mentions that there will repair and maintenance work of approximately 500 government schools falling under bmc. The dumping ground of Kanjurmarg will start working on a new method of waste to energy, cements roads will be constructed, which will also work on improving health, garbage and water” says, Shivsena Shinde faction spokesperson krishna Hegde.
While activist Kamlakar Shenoy says, “This budget is an eye wash to the people as there many tenders and projects proposed in the budget but it does not get implemented on the actual ground and that make this budget haywire”.
