PUNE | September 9, 2026 — Pune Municipal Corporation’s standing committee was scheduled to consider a proposal that would give the civic administration authority to write off certain property-tax arrears and correct errors in tax records, prompting objections from Opposition Leader Nilesh Nikam.
According to Loksatta, the administration has placed the proposal before the standing committee under Sections 485 and 152 of the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations Act. The proposal covers duplicate entries, typographical errors and minor administrative mistakes in property-tax records, as well as arrears that cannot be recovered from property owners.
Nikam alleged that transferring the authority to write off arrears from the standing committee to the administration could cause significant financial losses to the municipal corporation and increase the scope for irregularities. He has urged the committee not to approve the transfer of powers.
Nikam said municipal officials already have authority under Section 485 to correct errors in notices, bills and property-tax records. However, he argued that the power to write off unrecoverable arrears under Section 152 rests solely with the standing committee and requires its prior approval.
The Opposition leader further alleged that, if the proposal is approved, future property-tax waiver cases may no longer come before the standing committee for direct approval. Instead, he said, they could be placed before the committee only for information, or ‘observation’, after administrative action has been taken.
The proposal was listed for discussion at the standing committee meeting on Wednesday. The supplied report does not include a detailed response from the municipal administration to the allegations or specify the total value of arrears that could be covered under the proposed arrangement. The committee’s decision and any conditions attached to the proposal were also not available in the report.
