VIJAYAWADA: Calling the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) budget an immature one, CPI city unit said it will vehemently oppose any move by the civic authorities to impose more taxes on the people.
Speaking to newsmen here Friday, CPI city secretary D Shankar said VMC had come up with unrealistic figures when it presented its Rs 487-crore revenue budget. “They say after the household survey is completed, the property taxes collected would help in reaching the target of `414 crore. If there is to be any revenue increase, it would be around `20 crore or less, but not in hundreds of crores as projected by the VMC,” he said.
Shankar said the ruling party had failed to present facts to the people and was trying to hoodwink them with jugglery of numbers. “Instead of putting pressure on the people, efforts should be made to get the pending funds from both the Centre and the state government,” he said.
CPI leader wondered why chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who is complaining that the Centre is releasing funds due to the state, is doing the same when it comes to the pending funds for VMC. He warned of severe backlash if the civic body decided to impose more tax burden on the people.