Property tax defaulters owing Rs 25 lakh or more to the civic body will have their water connections snapped if they fail to cough up the dues on demand.

“It’s a crime for people to enjoy civic amenities without paying property tax,” mayor Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya said on Friday.

Officials in the Calcutta Municipal Corporation (CMC) said inspectors would visit the premises of the defaulters and demand the outstanding amount. Failure to pay up would result in disconnection of water supply.

The officials linked the decision to the authorities’ desperation to raise funds for various infrastructure development projects to be undertaken under the National Urban Renewal Mission.

The mission has already cleared schemes worth Rs 550 crore for the upgrade of the sewerage and water supply systems. Of the estimated cost, the civic body is required to cough up Rs 300 crore.

The outstanding property tax, on the other hand, adds up to Rs 515 crore.

The target group in the first phase of punitive action comprises the 1,000-odd defaulters who owe Rs 25 lakh or more to the civic body as property tax dues.

Following a meeting with the mayor on Friday, municipal commissioner Alapan Bandyopadhyay asked chief manager (revenue) Aniruddha Mukherjee, assessor collector (north) Bhaskar Bhattacharya and assessor collector (south) Souvick Sikdar to submit a list of defaulters in their respective areas by Wednesday.

The mayor ruled out any waiver of interest scheme to realise tax dues.

The water supply department, too, has decided to boost its drive to recover outstanding water charges from commercial users. Around 4,800 defaulters owe the department Rs 13 crore.