THANE:Within just a month of its full-fledged functioning, the newly setup vigilance branch of the octroi collection department of the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) has tightened the hooks on octroi offenders. The wing has recovered octroi and fines collectively worth around Rs 15 lakh during the month and got three octroi officials suspended for unfair practices.
Arvind Akashi, the Assistant Municipal Commissioner (AMC) in-charge of the wing informed Thane Plus that he came across several instances of transporters evading octroi within a span of just over five weeks. Officials of the wing brought the evaders to book and recovered the due octroi amount as well as ten times penalty from them.
"The wing has collected more than Rs 15 lakh during the period by way of due octroi amount and ten times penalty", the AMC said. He added that he had given strict warning to the transporters to pay the octroi taxes or face stern action in future and octori officials have also been warned of action if they tried to extend undue benefits to the evaders. He expressed the hope that the idea would work out and the revenue of the octroi department would increase in the current financial year.
The offenders brought to book include some builders from Mumbra and Kalva as well as the New Mumbra Transport Service, a transporter plying between the city and Mumbai. The offenders used to sneak into the city from the Kalyan Phata, Vitava as well as other octroi nakas without payment of octroi tax to the TMC. A builder was charged Rs 1.14 lakh on Friday while trying to evade octroi of just Rs 10,000 on the import of iron bars. The transporter was fined Rs 80,000 for the offence.
Earlier the AMC as well as Venkatesh Bhat, the Deputy Municipal Commissioner (DMC) in charge of the octroi department conducted checks on the functioning of the eighteen octroi collection nakas across the city. An instance of irregularity was found from the Kalva octroi post. Three employees posted at the naka were suspended from service on the charges of extending undue benefits to the transporters.
It may be noted that Nandkumar Jantre, the municipal commissioner has given top priority to the collection of octroi this year following sharp decline in civic revenues in the previous financial year. The department has been rid of long serving officials and replaced with new ones to end the syndicate between the bureaucracy and the transporters.
The commissioner also set up an independent vigilance wing under the AMC from June 11 onwards to crack down on the octroi evaders as well as the officials helping them. Till now the wing used to work under the department. The idea has worked out well for the time being.
courtesy:www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com
