Bihar Cabinet clears rules allowing village panchayats to levy taxes

Patna, Jul 15 (PTI) The Bihar government on Wednesday approved provisions allowing village panchayats to levy taxes and fees for services they provide to people, in a bid to make the rural bodies financially self-reliant. The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary. The Cabinet also approved provisions for delimiting the territorial areas of gram panchayats and for revising tax rates on two-wheelers and three-wheelers across the state. Talking to reporters after the meeting, Additional Chief Secretary of the Cabinet Secretariat Arvind Kumar Chaudhary said, "The Bihar Panchayat Raj Act, 2006, has provisions for taxes to be imposed by the panchayati raj institutions." "Under Section 27 of the Act, Gram Panchayats may impose various taxes, rates and fees for the services it provides to people. Now, the government has approved rules in this regard," he said. The officer said the new regulations provide for levying taxes on holdings in gram panchayat areas, fees on professions, trades and industries operating within panchayat jurisdictions, user charges for services provided by panchayats, and other prescribed fees. Gram panchayats will be empowered to levy these taxes and fees within the prescribed maximum limits after following the due process, he said, adding the move is expected to significantly enhance their revenue. The officer said the Cabinet had also approved provisions for delimiting the territorial areas of gram panchayats, panchayat samitis and zila parishads based on the 2011 Census. The three-tier Panchayati Raj system comprises a gram panchayat at the village level, a panchayat samiti at the block level and a zila parishad at the district level. According to the government, this decision was taken to strengthen local self-governance, ensure the effective implementation of development schemes, provide balanced representation in proportion to the population, and facilitate the smooth delivery of public services. It will also help maintain geographical and social cohesion within gram panchayats, promote the balanced development of all areas, and ensure equitable progress across their jurisdictions. The Cabinet also approved revisions to motor vehicle tax rates under the Bihar Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1994. "The revisions include a one percentage point increase in the existing lump-sum motor vehicle tax on two-wheelers, a Rs 1,000 increase in the one-time tax on three-wheelers, and a fourfold increase in the existing trade tax," the additional chief secretary of the Cabinet Secretariat said. He added that the revisions were necessary because the tax rates had not been revised for a long time. The Cabinet also decided to transfer the Chief Minister's Senior Citizens' Shelter Scheme from the Urban Development and Housing Department's jurisdiction to the Social Welfare Department. Under the scheme, shelters with a capacity of 100 beds are operated at every district headquarters, while one 50-bed unit functions in each subdivision other than district headquarters. Altogether, 139 shelter units across the state have a total capacity of more than 6,000 beds. The Cabinet approved a compensation amount of Rs 556.11 crore for the acquisition of 1,425.1148 acres of land for the proposed greenfield airport in Bhagalpur district and Rs 773.46 crore for the acquisition of 1,720.1160 acres of land in Munger district. It also approved the proposal to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the Airports Authority of India for the construction of airports in Rajgir, Rohtas and Kaimur. PTI PKD NSD