Dist’s land revenue share dips to 17%, urbanisation reason?

Kochi: The land revenue share of Ernakulam, the commercial hub of Kerala, to the state exchequer is declining fast, according to govt data. The district’s share for 2017-18 was Rs 57cr, that is 35% of the total land revenue of Rs 162cr that the state collected from all districts. Further, the data shows the district’s contribution in land revenue to the state has recorded significant drop to 17% in five years.
The land revenue of Ernakulam in 2022-23 was Rs 124cr, which is a two-times increase in five years.State collection jumped four times to Rs 719cr in the same period.
Land revenue comprises land tax, one-time building tax, luxury tax, survey charge and other statutory taxes and fees. Those levied from agricultural areas formed the bulk of the land tax.
While a land revenue official in the district said with Kochi city and its adjacent areas getting saturated with buildings and no land left to expand further, the scope for one-time building tax and land tax has declined.
“Ernakulam was once the commercial capital of Kerala. With the city and its adjacent areas experiencing saturation in the utilisation of land, it is assumed that the district is witnessing reduction in land revenue. However, new companies have started coming up in other districts and the demand is rising there. It is reflected in their rising land revenue. Being the commercial capital, more people in Ernakulam also approach courts regarding taxes and this leads to huge arrears as well,” he said.
Ernakulam MLA T J Vinod, who sought the land revenue details of the district, said a detailed study needs to be done to understand how the revenue contribution of the district to the state exchequer has come down drastically.
“I have asked for the reasons for this reduction in land revenue earnings of Ernakulam. The govt is yet to respond to it,” he said.
Financial experts cite shrinking of agriculture land due to expansion of buildings in Ernakulam and apathy on the part of officials to collect arrears as reasons for reduction in land revenue. “Urbanisation led to shrinking of cultivated lands and its pace in Ernakulam was high compared to other districts. People in Kochi city move to rural areas and construct houses there which is also costing the district land revenue. Some buy land there and leave it for years without giving tax. There would be huge land revenue arrears in Ernakulam. Besides, currently, land tax payment is made online and many times such a system is inefficient especially in Ernakulam, which govt takes for granted believing revenue will come from the district anyway,” says economist Martin Patrick.