Property tax data purification drive wipes out building records, many Kerala residents unable to pay taxes

Kozhikode, Kerala: Several homeowners in Kerala are unable to pay property taxes after crucial records were erased from the software used by local self-government bodies.

The issue stems from data purification efforts carried out during tax reforms, which wiped out details of buildings whose owners had not submitted the required forms or had long defaulted on tax payments.

Although the concerned procedures were completed in 2024, details of several property are missing from the system. The problem has been reported across Kerala, with Kozhikode Corporation alone suspected to have lost details of nearly a thousand buildings.

House owners realise the issue only when they attempt to pay tax at local body offices, where officials inform them that their records no longer exist. The authorities admit that restoring the data would be easier if local bodies were permitted to directly re-enter the information, saving the public from lengthy delays.

The purification drive, aimed at removing demolished buildings or duplicate entries, is believed to have also erased details of several tax-defaulting properties. Officials say the matter will now need a separate resolution, as missing data cannot be retrieved directly by local bodies.

Currently, all tax and service applications are processed through the K-SMART system, and restoration of deleted building records requires approval from the Local Self-Government Department’s Principal Directorate, followed by intervention from the Information Kerala Mission. However, this process has been dragging on indefinitely, leaving affected residents in limbo.