NMC stares at huge revenue gap as receipts fall short of budget target

Nagpur: The Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) raised only Rs2,680.27cr revenue in the first 10 months of the current financial year against an ambitious budget target of Rs5,565cr, achieving barely 48% of its projected receipts with just one month left before accounts close on March 31.The stark numbers come at a crucial time. After four years of administrator rule, municipal commissioner Abhijeet Chaudhari is set to present the revised budget for 2025-26 along with the proposed outlay for the next financial year before the standing committee in March. The financial performance so far indicates that the civic body is all but certain to miss its annual revenue benchmark by a wide margin.The receipt statement till Jan 31 lays bare the structural imbalance in NMC's finances. Of the Rs2,680.27cr collected, Rs1,471.13cr came from GST compensation and another Rs568.24cr from govt grants, together accounting for over Rs2,039cr. In effect, nearly 76% of the total revenue so far was grant-driven.Internal revenue heads failed to keep pace with targets. Property tax, against a target of Rs350cr, fetched Rs210.12cr till January-end. Water charges stood at Rs127.49cr against a Rs250cr target. The town planning dept, which was expected to generate Rs500cr through building permissions and development-related approvals, realised Rs244.13cr, falling short of even the halfway mark.Advertisement revenue, pegged at Rs9cr for the year, yielded Rs4.66cr so far. The market dept collected Rs11.04cr against a Rs15cr target, while the estate dept marginally exceeded its Rs10cr goal with Rs10.41cr receipts. GST grants, projected at Rs1,772cr, reached Rs1,471.13 crore till Jan.The numbers expose a widening fiscal gap. To meet the Rs5,565cr budgeted receipts, NMC would need to mobilise nearly Rs2,885cr, an improbable target without substantial last-minute grant releases.When Chaudhari presented the budget, he refrained from imposing new taxes, banking instead on improved recovery efficiency and expansion of the tax base. Yet, four years into administrator-led governance, there was no significant diversification of revenue sources or innovative monetisation of civic assets.As the revised estimates are tabled this month, the looming shortfall raises uncomfortable questions about financial planning, sustainability, and the corporation's continued dependence on state largesse. With mounting infrastructure demands and civic works pending, NMC's inability to strengthen its own revenue base may cast a long shadow over the upcoming fiscal blueprint.