E-khata services now available at Bangalore One centres

Bengaluru: With many citizens unable to access draft copies of the e-khata on their own, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) on Monday launched the services at all BangaloreOne centres.

Citizens can pay a fee of Rs 45 to avail the services, including uploading documents, to apply for the final copy of e-khata.

BBMP Chief Commissioner Tushar Girinath said services at BangaloreOne centres were launched after a week-long training of staff. "A lot of people complained to us that private cyber centres are charging up to Rs 5,000 to provide e-khata-related services. Similar facilities will now be available at BangaloreOne centres for just Rs 45," he said.

The civic body has uploaded draft copies of e-khatas pertaining to about 22 lakh properties to its website. Citizens can view their khatas as well as upload relevant documents to get the final copy without visiting the office of the BBMP's revenue department. The BangaloreOne centres will help families that are not tech-savvy.

In addition, the BBMP has also come up with a one-page format to raise grievances or complaints related to the e-khata initiative. People can fill up the note and share it with the BBMP's help desk where the problems will be addressed on priority. The one-page format seeks details of person, property, etc, so that the civic body can help them get the e-khata.

Tax scheme

The civic body has no plans to extend the One Time Settlement (OTS) scheme, introduced for the benefit of property tax defaulters, which will end on November 30.

"We are conducting the drive of sealing down commercial establishments so that they are aware of the benefits of paying the dues immediately," Girinath said.

Under the scheme, property owners may have to pay just Rs 25,000 as against Rs 63,000, he said as an example of the difference of amount one saves.