Waah Tax! Taj Mahal gets notice to pay Rs 1 crore for water, Rs 1.47 lakh for property

The iconic Taj Mahal in Agra was issued a notice to pay Rs 1 crore as water tax and Rs 1.47 lakh as house tax by the Agra Municipal Corporation.

The Taj Mahal has been issued a notice to pay Rs 1 crore as water tax and Rs 1.47 lakh as property tax by the Agra Municipal Corporation. The tax notices were issued to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

However, ASI’s Superintending Archaeologist Raj Kumar Patel such taxes are not applicable to historical monuments. He said that the departments have issued the notices by mistake and a reply will be sent to all the parties concerned.

Patel said since no commercial work is being done in the Taj Mahal’s premises and free facilities are provided to the public, taxes are not applicable on the monument. He added that the exemption from such taxes is mentioned in the UP Ancient and Historical Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Preservation Act. He also cited the special provision implemented in November 2017 for the tax exemption, an India Today report said.

A similar notice has been sent to Itmad-ud-Daulah, which is also an ASI-protected monument and one of the contenders for World-heritage monument status.

The notice sent to the ASI shows the pending house tax till March 31, 2022 as Rs 88,784, adding Rs 47,983 as interest for non-payment of due taxes.

Rs 11,098 has been charged as house tax for the year 2022-23, adding up to a total of Rs 14,7826 which has to be paid within 15 days.

Meanwhile, expressing shock at the notice, Agra Tourist Welfare Chamber secretary Vishal Sharma said that the Taj Mahal is a central government property and a world heritage monument. It is beyond comprehension why the Agra Municipal Corporation has served a tax recovery notice for the monument to the ASI.

He said that the Taj Mahal was declared a protected monument about 102 years back in 1920. Since then, this is the first time that the ASI has been served a house tax notice for the monument.

Sharma said that even the British government never brought the Taj Mahal under house tax, and the Agra Mayor should explain why this notice was issued.

This notice has been issued by the Agra Municipal Corporation to the Archaeological Department, Taj Garden at the Eastern Gate, Taj Mahal.

Talking to India Today, ASI Agra Superintendent R K Patel said that the Taj Mahal is the property of the Government of India, and the ASI is merely a caretaker. If the AMC wants house tax on the Taj Mahal, it should raise the demand to the central government.

Surprisingly, the notice also includes interest on the non-payment of taxes in the past.

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