Residents seeking separate property IDs for portions of buildings could get relief from a cumbersome approval process, while sanitation workers employed by Lion Services may get a stricter salary payment deadline. Both proposals are set to come up at the Chandigarh municipal corporation’s (MC) General House meeting on Wednesday. The supplementary agenda also includes a review of the city’s anti-drug campaign.
The civic body will consider amending Clause 18 of the Property Tax By-Laws, 2003, to simplify the issuance of separate property IDs where applicants face difficulties obtaining signatures from other property owners.
Under the existing rules, applicants seeking separate assessment of portions of a building or plot must clear all property tax dues and submit a division plan signed by all owners.
The civic body has proposed retaining the requirement for payment of all outstanding taxes but relaxing the signatures requirement for residential properties. Under the proposed amendment, the division plan for a residential property would need to be signed by the applicant or owner, rather than all owners.
For commercial and industrial properties, the plan would continue to require signatures from all owners. Payment of all outstanding property tax dues would also remain mandatory.
The proposal is intended to make the process less cumbersome in cases where disputes or differences between owners of different floors or portions prevent applicants from obtaining the necessary signatures. The corporation has noted that such difficulties can hold up the issuance of separate property IDs, delay property tax assessment and contribute to the accumulation of outstanding property tax dues.
Lion Services to be directed to pay wages by seventh
In another item, the corporation will consider directing Lion Services, which carries out mechanised and manual sweeping in the southern sectors, to ensure that its workers are paid by the seventh of every month.
The company’s contract requires it to deposit wages directly into employees’ bank accounts by the seventh and submit a compliance certificate to the municipal corporation by the tenth. The contractor is required to pay salaries from its own funds, irrespective of whether the civic body has released its payments.
The proposal follows repeated complaints of delayed wages raised by sanitation workers’ unions and councillors. The contract, which began on April 1, 2022, has been extended amid a dispute over the award of a fresh tender. The matter is pending before the Punjab and Haryana high court.
The 366th General House meeting will be held at 11 am on October 28 at the corporation’s Assembly Hall. The third supplementary agenda item is a report on Chandigarh Police’s anti-drug campaign, which recorded 173 FIRs and 1,092 arrests or preventive detentions between June 26 and October 25.
The meeting will also consider spending ₹1 crore on the 55th Rose Festival in 2027 after the MC failed to attract agencies to sponsor and organise the event.
Another proposal seeks approval for a ₹62 lakh fire-fighting system at the MC sub-office in Manimajra, Sector 13. The building currently lacks an approved fire safety system, delaying the issuance of a fire NOC required for a high-tension electricity connection.