To widen house tax net and detect defaulters, the MCD is planning to create a comprehensive database of properties in Delhi after streamlining relevant information collected from various sources.

The civic body plans to bring 10 lakh more properties in the tax base this fiscal for which it needs detailed data about a number of properties in the city.

While it can get information from various sources such as Survey of India, its own door-to-door survey, discoms, MTNL and census, its handling and matching require computerisation with a good data warehousing solution, Municipal Commissioner K S Mehra told a meeting of the MCD Standing Committee today.

The meeting was also informed that a full-Geographical Information Service (GIS)-based property tax system should be in place by two years from now (end of 2011-12 fiscal).

"Data bases from other sources are required to be made compatible with the existing database in use in the department This work is expected to be over in six months," Mehra said.

The sample data obtained from Survey of India is being analysed. Making use of this data base in broadening the tax base will require strengthening the IT infrastructure and enhancement in the sanctioned and working strength of the staff, the meeting was informed.

The targets under an action plan prepared for better tax collection and submitted at the meeting envisages that "all properties have to be enumerated and database created on a good computerised system in one year."

The civic body aims to "carry out the analysis of the existing property tax system and design a roadmap for a fully computerised environment and preferably a Geographical Information System (GIS) base...design the system of unique property identification code and create a comprehensive database within the controls of MCD."

The meeting saw several councillors raising the issue of simplification of tax collection arrangements and tax return forms, saying the tax department should function more effectively to realise revenue.

Chairman of Standing Committee Yogender Chandolia said MCD will take penal action against those not paying taxes or submitting cheques which were dishonoured and warned that it may also publish names of big defaulters in newspapers.