• House, water and sanitation taxes slashed
• 15mgd water from Daducha Dam backed by Rs100m grant to shift tubewells to solar
• package follows talks between public representatives and RCB committee, says MNA

RAWALPINDI: A major relief package was announced on Sunday for the residents of Rawalpindi Cantonment, slashing house, water and sanitation taxes.

The package was announced by Chairman of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Cabinet Division Malik Ibrar Ahmed following successful negotiations between public representatives and a high-level committee of Rawalpindi Cantonment Board (RCB).

Under the revised framework, the residential house tax hike has been curtailed from 30 per cent to 20 per cent, three easy installments have been permitted for tax payments and surcharges on past arrears under the Amendment Act 2023 have been completely waived.

Furthermore, Daducha Dam will supply 15 million gallons per day (MGD) of water to the cantonment backed by a Rs100 million grant to shift tubewells and water storage facilities to solar power.

Addressing a press conference along with MPA Malik Iftikhar Ahmed, former RCB vice president Malik Munir Ahmed, Raja Irfan Imtiaz and former board members Malik Tahir Ayoub, Arshad Mehmood Qureshi, Rasheed Ahmed Khan and others, Malik Ibrar Ahmed expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and Field Marshal Asim Munir for initiating the communication and infrastructure projects in Rawalpindi.

He said the completion of the Charing Cross and Qasim Market underpasses in NA-55 will convert the Rawat-to-Tarnol route into a signal-free corridor.

Mr Ahmed said exorbitant increases in municipal taxes had sparked widespread public resentment across all segments of the cantonment population.

Taking cognizance of public concerns, political representatives engaged the RCB administration, prompting the cantonment executive officer to constitute the high-level committee.

The committee held daily consultative sessions with former board members and reached a consensus to roll back the excessive hikes.

Under the agreed terms, the triennial tax revision for 2026-29, initially approved at a flat 30 per cent hike for both residential and commercial units, has been revised to 20 per cent for residential properties while maintaining 30 per cent for commercial units.

He said changes in commercial use will require formal revision notices, and assessment appeals will be officially registered. Taxpayers who cleared dues between 2023 and 2026 will not face retrospective surcharges following committee reassessments, and bills will be issued strictly against current payable amounts.

He said the property owners submitting title deeds, CNIC copies and formal applications will be assigned immediate cantonment board (CB) numbers, while newly-incorporated urban pockets will receive CB numbers and tax liabilities only starting next fiscal year with previous arrears fully written off.

Detailing the revised residential door-to-door sanitation rates, he announced that charges for 1 to 3 marla units had been fixed at Rs2,100 per annum (Rs175 per month), 3 to 5 marla units at Rs3,200 per annum (Rs266 per month) and 5 to 7 marla units at Rs4,400 per annum (Rs366 per month). Annual rates for 7 to 10 marla, 10 to 15 marla and 15 to 20 marla plots stand at Rs5,200, Rs7,000 and Rs10,000, respectively. For commercial properties, multiple categories have been abolished in favour of a flat sanitation levy of 1 per cent of the annual rental value (ARV), aligning with Punjab’s “Suthra Punjab” clean-up model within four months.

Annual water charges have also been revised downward: rates for 1 to 5 marla units were reduced from Rs14,400 to Rs10,800; 5 to 7 marla from Rs20,400 to Rs18,800 and 7 to 10 marla from Rs30,600 to Rs28,000, while 10 to 15 marla and 15 to 20 marla rates were fixed at Rs37,000 and Rs40,000 per annum, respectively.

For tax recovery, the local MNA said authorities must issue a mandatory 30-day notice prior to property sealing with businesses offering essential items exempted under Section 144 such as pharmacies, milk shops, bakeries, butcher shops and green grocers, protected from sealing drives.

Mr Ahmed added that water supplies from Chahan Dam and Daducha Dam will elevate the cantonment’s total clean water output to 50 MGD.

Addressing civic amenities for the cantonment’s 800,000 residents, he confirmed that land designated at Rakh Dhamial by parliamentarians for a public graveyard will soon receive dedicated ambulance and funeral bus services.

He urged residents to visit the operational constituency offices of former RCB members to seek assistance with bill rectifications and municipal concerns.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2026