Server issue no barrier, 75 pc owners pay property tax online

Chennai: Interestingly, 78 per cent of the property owners, who paid their taxes in the south region, used the online payment system. Around 73 per cent of the owners used the online system in the central region. Only 60 per cent of owners in north Chennai paid their taxes online. Of more than 2 lakh owners, 1.45 lakh owners used online methods.

As per Chennai Corporation data, only 42 and 56 per cent of owners used online payment methods in Manali and Thiruvottiyur zones respectively. On contrary, 81 per cent of owners used online modes in Sholinganallur. Around 79 per cent of owners in Perungudi and Adyar used online modes. In case of Perungudi, only one per cent of the taxpayers visited tax counters, followed by two per cent in Adyar.

“Apart from online payments, a considerable amount was collected through cheque payments. The online system encourages property owners to pay their taxes sooner,” an official said.

On the other hand, 23 per cent of property owners paid the tax collectors, who visit houses with handheld devices. Only 4 per cent of owners visited counters at Corporation buildings.

Even though the number of property owners, who used online payment methods, is higher than the number of owners, who used handheld devices, around 47 per cent of the amount was through handheld devices. Around 46 per cent of the amount was collected online.

Several property owners and field-level revenue officials complained that the online payment was affected due to a server slowdown on April 15, the last day of the property tax payment.