Method of assessment and calculation of property tax

(1) Every building shall be assessed together with its site and other adjacent premises occupied as an appurtenance thereto unless the owner of the building is a different person from the owner of such site or premises. (2) The annual value of land and building shall be deemed to be the gross annual rent at which they may reasonably be expected to be let from month to month or from year to year less a deduction in the case of building, of ten per cent of that portion of such annual rent which is attributable to the building alone, apart from their sites and adjacent lands occupied as an appurtenance thereto; and the said deduction shall be in lieu of all allowances for repairs or on any other account whatever: Provided that- (a) in the case of any building of a class not ordinarily let, the gross annual rent of which cannot, in the opinion of the Commissioner, be estimated, the annual value of the premises shall be deemed to be six per cent of the total of the estimated value of the land and the estimated present cost of erecting the building after deduction for depreciation a reasonable amount which shall in no case be less than ten per cent of such cost; (b) in the case of any building in any industrial estate wherein essential amenities including water supply, drainage and lighting are not provided by the municipality but provided by the Industries department of the Government, the annual value of such building shall be deemed to be four per cent of its capital value: Provided that, if any question arises whether for the purposes of this clause, essential amenities are provided by the Industries department or other authority, it shall be decided by such authority as may be prescribed. Explanation.- For the purpose of this clause, ‘industrial estate’ means any area selected and developed by the Government or developed by any other authority under the control of the Government, wherein any industry or a class of industry are accommodated; and (c) machinery and furniture shall be excluded from valuations under this section. (3) The Government shall have power to make rules regarding the manner in which, the person or persons by whom and the intervals at which, the value of the land, the present cost of erecting the building and the amount to be deducted for depreciation, shall be estimated or revised, in any case or class of cases to which clause (a) or clause (b) of the proviso to sub-section (2) applies, and they may, by such rules, restrict or modify the application of the provisions to such case or class of cases. (4) The property tax calculated in pursuance of this section shall be payable for every half-year and shall be paid by the owner or occupier within the half-year period. Explanation.— For the purpose of this sub-section, the expression “half-year” shall be from the 1st day of April to the 30th day of September and from the 1st day of October to the 31st day of March of a year. (5) The Commissioner shall issue a property tax book containing all the details of the building or land and the property tax payable in relation to such building or land in such form as may be prescribed. (6) (a) The council shall, in the case of lands which are not used exclusively for agricultural purposes and are not occupied by, or adjacent and appurtenant to, buildings, levy property tax on such lands at such rate as it may fix, having regard to its location and subject to the minimum and maximum rates per square feet as may be prescribed by the Government. (b) Where there is any land with building situated within the municipal limit, and if the extent of the land left vacant is twice the plinth area of the building, the Commissioner shall determine the property tax on the vacant land which exceeds twice the plinth area of the building at the rate fixed by the council.