Adityapur Municipal Council. File picture

Jamshedpur, Oct. 10: The decision of Adityapur Municipal Council (AMC) to slap notices on Adityapur Industrial Area (AIA) units for the payment of holding tax has brought the council and industrialists at loggerheads.

Civic body members have claimed that they would ensure that “erring industrialists” pay up, while traders, on their part, have stated that they have cleared their taxes to the Adityapur Industrial Area Development Authority (Aiada) and are not liable to pay any more. They have called the AMC tax demand “unfair” and akin to the payment of dual taxes.

The council’s vice-president, Purendra Narayan Singh, said the process to sent notices to the units would start in a couple of days.

According to him, his council has every right to collect holding tax from industrial units that fall under its jurisdiction. He complained that around 500 units, despite repeated requests, have failed to pay up their holding taxes.

He added that the AMC is yet to recover crores of rupees worth of holding tax from industrial units and are presently going through their past record for ascertaining the amount locked up in the AIA.

Some of the units have not paid their dues since their inception, he added.

“We have every right to collect holding tax from private houses and industrial units that fall under our jurisdiction. The AMC is going to pressurise the industrialists and ensure that they pay up. We are presently trying to increase our revenue and roping in the industrial units in ambit of holding tax is one of our main aim,” he added.

He said the AMC board has decided to bring the units under the purview of tax.

Meanwhile, the AIA traders have come out against the tax drive. They stress that they would approach the Aiada if the AMC issues the notices.

On several occasions earlier, Adityapur Notified Area Committee that was converted into the AMC after election earlier in 2008, had tried to collect holding tax from the industrial units.

However, it was forced to reconsider its move after protests from industrialists on the issue. “It is to be noted that the industrial units are already paying maintenance tax to the Aiada. Besides, we also pay for the streetlights. Before asking us to pay the tax, the AMC should first tell us what we are paying up for,” said the president of the Adityapur Small Industries Association, S.N. Thakur. He stressed that none of the traders would accept the dual taxation policy in the area and said that the war between the body and traders has just begun.