Mumbai, April 1 (IANS) Maharashtra Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule said on Wednesday that the state government avoided a proposed 12 to 14 per cent increase in ready reckoner (RR) rates, citing prevailing global and war conditions.

“The state government rejected the proposed increase in property rates to protect public interest,” he added.

He said micro-zoning would be implemented in metropolitan cities such as Mumbai, Pune, Thane, Nagpur and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, under which property rates would be determined based on local amenities.

“Rates will be applied based on the value of each property and not uniformly,” he said, adding that rates were simplified in line with changes in development plans and regional plans.

Minister Bawankule’s statement comes a day after he had announced on Tuesday that the state government has decided not to increase the RR rates for the financial year 2026-27.

The Office of the Inspector General of Registration and Controller of Stamps subsequently announced that the rates effective from April 1 will remain at a ‘status quo’ compared to the previous year (2025-26).

Minister Bawankule said that by keeping rates stable for 2026-27, the state government aims to ensure that common citizens do not face an additional financial burden during property transactions.

The RR rate or circle rate, is the minimum property value set by the state government for a specific area, used as a benchmark to calculate stamp duty and registration fees.

“It ensures fair taxation, prevents undervaluation of property deals, and is updated annually based on location, amenities, and market trends,” the state’s Revenue Department Officer said.

“Despite maintaining stable rates, the Department of Registration and Stamps has recorded a massive surge in revenue. For the 2025-26 fiscal year (as of March 30, 2026), the state collected a total of Rs 60,568.94 crore. The ‘I-Sarita’ system remained the primary contributor, accounting for Rs 49,534 crore of the total collection,” Minister Bawankule said.

He also added that the state government in the annual budget for 2026-27 has set the target of mobilisation of Rs 68,600 crore through stamp duty and registration fee.

The Minister said that encroachments up to 1,500 square feet constructed before January 1, 2011, on government land or within layouts would be regularised, subject to conditions including residence in Maharashtra and inclusion in the 2011 voters’ list.

He noted that action would be taken against constructions beyond 1,500 square feet.

Minister Bawankule said the land measurement process would be made cheaper and faster with the launch of ‘Version 2’ software by the land records department.

He noted that measurement charges would be reduced to Rs 200 per subdivision, bringing down costs from around Rs 10,000 to Rs 1,000.

He added that property data would be stored on iCloud and processing time would be reduced.

He said that powers in breach of condition cases were decentralised, allowing decisions up to Rs 10 lakh at the district collector level, up to Rs 20 lakh at the divisional commissioner level, and up to Rs 1 crore at the local level.

Minister Bawankule said quasi-judicial revenue cases must be disposed of within 90 days in two hearings.

The Minister said action would be taken against those blocking access roads to farms, including blocking their government scheme IDs for five years.

–IANS

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