Ghaziabad civic body plans to issue unique IDs for all properties

GHAZIABAD: Soon, each and every property in Ghaziabad may have a unique ID. The Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation (GMC) plans to issue a 17-digit identification number to every plot of land in the city, including residential and commercial.

The unique number will denote the area and other information where the property is based. There are an estimated five lakh properties in Ghaziabad.

Officials said the aim is to help the civic body compute property taxes in a more precise manner, which differs from area to area, and will also help owners find out taxes pending on their land at a click of a button. In the long run, this will help the GMC realise maximum revenues in the form of property tax.

“The existing tax computation employed by the GMC is old and outdated, and needs a revamp. So, under this programme, we will shortly be introducing a software by the name of property tax management with an aim to maximise property tax revenues,” Mahendra Singh Tanwar, municipal commissioner, told TOI.

The system would entail a unique ID code. The first two digits of the identity code will denote the state, followed by a two-digit district code, while the third set of two-digit code will reveal the municipality name, zone will be denoted next and the remaining will reveal the area.

“The number will be superimposed on the city’s map and a single click on any property will show the details,” the civic body chief said.

“Properties — residential or commercial — have different tax slabs, with the rate of commercial properties being four times that of residential. There is a tendency on the part of many consumers to list commercial properties under residential, which results in loss of revenue to the GMC. This system promises to end this anomaly,” said Tanwar.

The civic body levies tax on its 3.30 lakh properties, but officials believe in reality there are five lakh properties.