Kalaburagi City Corporation
| Photo Credit: ARUN KULKARNI
The Kalaburagi City Corporation has been unable to pay the salaries of its employees for February and March, revealing the extent of the financial crisis in the civic body. The salary of outsourced workers have not been paid for three months.
In January 2024, the 5th State Finance Commission had instructed urban local bodies (ULBs) in Kalaburagi division not to rely solely on government grants, but to generate revenue through collection of commercial and property taxes, cess and fees. But, the Kalaburagi city corporation failed to develop revenue streams of its own.
City Corporation Commissioner Shinde Avinash Sanjeevan stressed the need to enhance sources of revenue through reforms in property tax, trade licence, advertisement fees, and rationalisation of user charges during a series of meetings to find a solution. He insisted that the salaries will be cleared within a couple of days.
Besides property tax, the corporation is planning to introduce a user fee for the collection and disposal of garbage from hospitals, hotels, bars and restaurants in the coming days.
At present, the number of employees of the city corporation is 345 against the sanctioned 1,725 posts. The monthly salary bill for 345 permanent employees is approximately ₹2 crore, and that of 1,536 outsourced employees, including poura karmikas, garbage truck drivers, loaders , cleaners, and diesel bill would add up to ₹3 crore per month.
The City Corporation requires ₹5 crore monthly, which adds up to at least ₹60 crore per annum, for salaries while the total revenue receipts is only ₹39 crore. The significant gap between tax collection and salary expenditure is the reason for inability to pay salaries on time, Mr. Shinde explained.
Published – April 29, 2025 09:38 am IST
