Mumbai: BMC will break its FDs to make up for 40 pc of expenses

With only Rs 10343 crore or 40 per cent of infrastructure funds spent till December 2023 the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC is thinking of spending Rs 31774 crore in the coming financial year The BMC Administrator Iqbal Singh Chahal proposed a budget of Rs 59954 crore for the next year 202425 The revenue income of the BMC is estimated at Rs 36644 crore and the gap between income and expenses will be filled by fetching another Rs 22505 crore from fixed depositsBMC Chief I S ChahalThe Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC is highly dependent on indirect source of compensation in lieu of octroi from the state as its secondlargest sourcemdashproperty taxmdashhas dwindled The BMC had proposed Rs 28884 crore for infrastructure work in 202324 by fetching Rs 18617 crore from fixed deposits But till December only 40 per cent of it was utilised Chahal said that in the next two months the capital expenditure will reach Rs 25316 crore and for that they will be estimated to fetch FDs in and above the revenue income But if the past few yearsrsquo data is anything to go by capital expenditure wonrsquot reach beyond 65 per centFD share up to 3837In 201819 of the total Rs 33441crore budget the administration proposed the use of Rs 4380 crore from FDs which is 13 per cent of the total amount Now five years later the share of FDs has risen to 38 per cent underlining the dependence on reserve fundsProperty tax dwindlesTill last year property tax was the second largest source of income for the BMC But in the revised estimate the BMC said they will collect around R5500 crore from Development Plan fees and premiums and the revised property tax income will be around Rs 4500 crore only The BMC estimated Rs 4950 crore crore from property tax in 202425 and Chahal glossed over the question over a hike this yearSeven revenue generatorsThe BMC has decided to explore new ways of increasing revenue In the civic budget of 202425 Chahal mentions seven ways to increase the revenue of BMC The BMC is going to introduce special healthcare fees to patients outside of MumbaiChahal said ldquoBMC is providing the best healthcare facilities to patients not only from Maharashtra but also other states It is necessary to think about implementing a lsquoSeparate Fee Structurersquo for people coming for treatment from outside of Maharashtrardquo Chahal said ldquoA review will be done to explore the possibility of imposing a Separate Fee Structure for patients within Maharashtra from outside of MumbairdquoTo avoid tolls on mega roads the BMC has decided to generate revenue from advertisements and other ways ldquoWe will carry out a financial study to explore the possibility of selfsustainability in Mumbai These projects require a huge amount of capital expenditure to get them completed in time and with qualityrdquo said ChahalBMC has also decided to demand a 75 per cent share as against 25 per cent in the revenue received on account of premium charges for an additional 050 FSI and a 70 per cent share as against 50 per cent in premium on account of Fungible Compensatory FSI ldquoCorrespondence has been made with the State to consider the share in this welldeserved revenue expected on account of FSI premium to BMCrdquo said the officialThe BMC has decided to develop a transport hub on the Octroi Naka site at Dahisar and Mankurd Along with the transportation hub it is proposed to develop the full potential of the plot and compatible development like commercial office spaces retail spaces transit hotel convention centre exhibition centre etc This would generate revenue and make the project sustainableFurthermore the civic body has decided to appoint a worldrenowned real estate consultant who would advise guide and implement a roadmap for the generation of revenue from BMC leasehold and tenanted properties to the tune of Rs 10000 crore annually Similarly it is proposed to invite wardwise and zonewise bids for the development of Municipal Tenanted Properties where a cluster of buildings and plots within the same ward can be redeveloped In the said redevelopment the entire rehabsale can be proposed on single or multiple plots within the cluster and one of the plots of the cluster may get vacated The financial potential of the vacant plots will be explored by BMC by conceding various options including auctioning of the plotsCapital expenditure for projectsgtgt Coastal Road Project South Packages North Versova to Dahisar Last Leg Dahisar to Bhayandar Link Road Rs 4250 13 per centgtgt MSDPSewerage Treatment Plant STP Rs 4090 13 per centgtgt Water Supply Rs 3420 11 per centgtgt Roads amp Traffic Department Rs 3200 10 per centgtgt Sewerage Disposal Rs 193361 6 per centgtgt Stormwater drainsRs 1930 6 per centgtgt GoregaonMulund Link Road Rs 1870 6 per centgtgt Health BudgetRs 171685 5 per centgtgt Bridges Department Rs 1610 5 per centgtgt Redevelopment of SWM Staff Quarters Ashray Yojana Rs 1055 3 per centgtgt Development Plan DepartmentRs 800 3 per centgtgt Repairs to Municipal Properties amp Slum Improvement Rs 53153 2 per centgtgt Solid Waste Management amp Transport SWM Project Rs 45998 2 per centgtgt Repairs to Primary School Buildings Rs 33019 1 per centgtgt Other Rs 457743 14 per centTotal Rs 3177459 in crore rupeesSources of income revenue total 36644 in crore rupeesgtgt Grant in aid on account of compensation in lieu of octroi 13331gtgt Receipts from the development plan department 5800gtgt Property tax 4950gtgt Water amp sewerage charges 1923gtgt Income from investments 2206gtgt Supervision charges 1681gtgt Grantinaid from the government 1249gtgt Receipts from roads amp bridges 509gtgt Receipts from license department 325gtgt Receipts from hospitals and medical colleges 338gtgt Other receipts 4332Highlightsgtgt The BMC spent only 40 per cent of infra expenses R28884 cr till Decembergtgt The BMC proposed R31775 crore for projects in the next yeargtgt Property tax fell to third place as income sourcegtgt BMC keeps ambiguity over the hike in property taxHow BMC increase incomehellipgtgt Different fees for treatment of patients from outside of the citygtgt Extra water charges and extra sewerage charges levied on builtup areagtgt Develop revenue from mega projectsgtgt BMC will demand a 75 per cent share by the FSI premiumgtgt Revenue generation from leased propertyRs 59954 crBMC proposed budget for 202425