Protests staged against proposed property tax hike

‘All sections of people are opposing the proposal’

Members of Visakhapatnam Apartment Resident Welfare Association (VARWA) and Visakha Residential Colony Associations Federation (NIVAS) staged protests at the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) main office and several zonal offices against the proposed property tax hike here on Tuesday. Speaking on the occasion, member of Forum for Development of North Andhra(FDNA) A. Aja Sarma said that the State government made a drastic change by levying the property tax based on the capital value, which earlier used to be levied as per rental basis. Any property tax hike proposal should be placed before the elected council before it is notified for public opinion. But it was not done in this case, he said. The notification issued ignored the council and it is against the law, Mr. Aja Sarma said.