The Kolhapur Municipal Corporation has become Maharashtra’s first local body to grant property tax benefits to housing societies and individuals who install charging stations for electric vehicles.
This action is being conducted in accordance with the recently announced Maharashtra government’s Electric Vehicles (EV) Policy 2021 with the primary goal of accelerating battery EV penetration in the state so that they contribute 10% of new vehicle registrations by 2025.
On Wednesday, KMC Administrator Kadambari Balkawade approved the existing policy to execute the ruling. On Thursday, Kolhapur district guardian minister Satej Patil announced the administrative body’s decision.
“Kolhapur wishes to set a good example by enacting this policy,” Patil said on Twitter.
Homeowners will receive a 2% property tax reduction if they put up charging stations for their own EVs and make the infrastructure available to other electric vehicle owners, according to the decree.
The housing societies will receive an exemption of 3% if the charging station is installed without taking up any parking space. The housing societies can also use the charging stations for economic uses, in addition to residents.
If the charging station is only for inhabitants of the housing society and not for commercial use, the property tax for the space used will be levied at domestic rates rather than commercial rates.
In any event, the charging station should not generate traffic congestion.
The decision to give property tax concessions has been made to promote electric vehicles and a clean atmosphere, alongside benefiting Kolhapur inhabitants from the programme, added Patil.
Kolhapur’s residents are gradually shifting to more environmentally friendly modes of transportation. In the previous few months, the city has seen a persistent increase in the sale of electric scooters, and the trend is expected to continue.
However, the city lacks widespread electric charging points, mostly for cars. Therefore, sales of EVs are modest, and consumers continue to favor petrol or diesel vehicles.
