Ludhiana MC to present its budget on Monday

The municipal corporation (MC) is gearing to present its estimated budget of around ₹990 crore for the fiscal year 2024-25 on Monday during a meeting of the technical advisory committee.

Last year’s sanctioned budget was ₹937 crore.

The MC aims to explore various revenue avenues to support the proposed budget. Officials will present the estimated budget in the upcoming technical advisory committee meeting scheduled on Monday, where discussions on projects will take place, and final approval is expected in the following weeks.

The budget encompasses various categories, including property tax, water tax, MC tax on electricity, cow cess, additional excise duty, temporary lease, advertisement on MC properties, shops and establishment license fee, plan sanction fee, change of land use, fines for illegal construction, Tehbazari composition fee, Right to Information fees, library fees, road cutting charges, sale of land, fire tender expenses, auditor fees, solid waste management, night shelter expenses and directorate charges among other things.

The MC aims to generate ₹12.50 crore from advertisements in the new financial year, compared to ₹10.50 crore targeted in the previous year. In the fiscal year 2023-24, the civic body generated only ₹6.40 crore from advertisements between April 1 and December 31, 2023. It expects to generate an additional ₹4.10 crore from January 1 to March 31, 2024, according to the budget documents prepared by the MC that are assessed by the HT.

The MC plans to allocate ₹9 crore for solid waste management, ₹18 crore for diesel purchase, ₹22 crore for sewerage, ₹5.5 crore for parks and gardens, ₹70 crore for street cement concrete flooring, and ₹10 crore for bitumen roads.

In terms of revenue generation, the MC aims to collect ₹140 crore from property tax in the upcoming financial year, compared to the ₹130 crore target for the ongoing fiscal year. Similarly, the MC aims to generate ₹60 crore from water supply and sewer charges, although it has struggled to meet the target for the current fiscal year. Additionally, the MC aims to secure a maximum income of ₹625 crore from the Punjab Municipal Fund during 2024-25.

“We have prepared an estimated budget of ₹990 crore. A meeting will be convened on Monday with the Technical Advisory Committee to discuss this budget. Following the meeting’s approval, the finalised budget will be sent to the state government,” MC commissioner Sandeep Rishi said.