Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar civic body collects Rs 108.63 crore as Gunthewari deadline ends

Crowds thronged the municipal corporation in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar on the last day of the Gunthewari regularisation scheme. Residents rushed around all day with applications and documents to get their plots and houses regularised. By evening, the scheme had brought Rs 108.63 crore into the corporation's coffers.

Since crores of rupees were paid on the last day alone, the revenue figure is likely to rise further. Applications and files were accepted until midnight. The administration has so far made no official announcement on extending the scheme's deadline.

The Gunthewari regularisation drive began on July 15, with October 31 fixed as the last date. The deadline fell on a Saturday, and a large crowd of applicants gathered at the corporation's town planning department. By evening, the corporation had received 12,200 files.

There were several arrangements for paying the fees. During the day, people paid challans worth about Rs 3 crore at the bank in Niralabazar. More than Rs 1 crore was deposited at the corporation's cash counter. Facilities to pay the charges were also set up at 12 other places in the city. Town planning department officials said the revenue collected so far had reached Rs 108.63 crore.

In the background, a large number of new settlements have come up in recent years in areas adjoining the city limits. In areas where the development plan had not been approved, many landowners carried out illegal plotting and sold the plots. People built houses on these plots and began living there. To give relief to such residents, the Gunthewari scheme offered a chance to regularise plots bought before December 2020 and the construction on them.

Mayor Sameer Rajurkar decided to waive the heavy penalty amount under the scheme. This gave people financial relief. For this reason the scheme drew a good response, and the corporation's revenue has also risen substantially.