ISLAMABAD, Dec 22: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has served notices on some 600 defaulters of both commercial and residential property tax, the Authority’s director revenue, Jamilur Rehman, told Dawn on Saturday.

The Authority has collected property tax amounting to Rs250 million till November 2001 against this year’s target of Rs500 million, the official said.

He said the CDA had started a drive to recover tax from defaulters, and increase the number of tax payers in Islamabad. He said the Authority also expected to achieve the annual target before the end of the current fiscal year.

Responding to a question, Mr Rehman said after 15 days, show-cause notices would be served on the defaulters. If they do not respond to the notices, their cases will be sent to the CDA magistrate/collector for legal action, he added.

A source told Dawn that commercial property tax was being collected after a survey was conducted by CDA’s special magistrate Arshad Mehmood Chaudhry to bring defaulters into the tax net.

It is for the first time that a complete record of commercial properties in the Capital had been gathered.

According to the survey, most of the traders and owners of commercial properties were not paying tax to the CDA because the Authority did not serve notices on the individuals, but, on the owners of the plazas.

In most cases, the first owners had sold their plazas, or had died. Therefore, most of the notices, which the CDA sent, were not responded to.

According to the survey, those who had been evading property tax for last many years, have started paying their dues to the Authority.