Vijayawada Municipal Corporation Achieves Rs 267.10 Crore Tax Collection for 2025-26 Financial Year
The Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) has successfully collected a total of Rs 267.10 crore in taxes for the recently concluded 2025-26 financial year. This marks a significant increase of Rs 15 crore compared to the Rs 252 crore collected during the 2024-25 period, highlighting a positive trend in municipal revenue generation.
Detailed Breakdown of Tax Assessments and Collections
Vijayawada city comprises 2.27 lakh property tax assessments and 14,575 vacant land tax (VLT) assessments. The current demand for these taxes stands at Rs 172.60 crore for property tax and Rs 22.98 crore for VLT. When including arrears, the total demand across both categories reached Rs 454.00 crore, out of which Rs 226.28 crore was collected in the financial year.
According to the Revenue DCB (Demand, Collection, Balance) abstract report, the overall collection efficiency for VMC is 30.13%. Among all tax components, private property tax demonstrated the highest performance, with 75% of the demand collected. Specifically, out of a Rs 228 crore demand, Rs 170 crore was gathered by March 31.
Strategic Initiatives Driving Revenue Improvement
VMC Additional Commissioner (Revenue) G Srujana attributed the enhanced tax collection to continuous efforts in tracing vacant land tax owners. Key measures included:
- Formation of a dedicated VLT committee to oversee collections.
- Placement of boards and property seizure flex banners on vacant lands to increase awareness and compliance.
- Implementation of lawful actions such as disconnection of water and underground drainage services, along with seizure of commercial properties for non-payment.
These initiatives led to a notable improvement in VLT collection, which rose to Rs 25.26 crore from Rs 19.41 crore in the previous financial year. The deputy commissioner emphasized that these proactive steps were crucial in boosting overall revenue.
Future Targets and Outlook
Building on this success, VMC has set an ambitious target for the 2026-27 financial year: to achieve 90% of the total collection demand. This goal reflects the civic body's commitment to further enhancing tax compliance and revenue streams through sustained enforcement and community engagement.
The data indicates a mixed performance across tax categories, but the overall growth and strategic focus suggest a promising trajectory for Vijayawada's municipal finances in the coming years.
