The Madhya Pradesh government is preparing to launch a large-scale verification drive to identify property tax and water tax defaulters across urban areas by integrating a special survey with the 2027 Census. The exercise aims to update property records, detect unregistered buildings, and improve revenue collection for urban local bodies.

The Urban Development and Housing Department has directed all district collectors, municipal commissioners, municipal councils and nagar parishads to begin preparations for the exercise, which will cover nearly 5.5 million urban households across the state.

Special Survey During Census

As part of the Census scheduled for February 2027, enumerators will conduct a physical verification of residential and commercial properties to determine whether eligible buildings are paying property tax and water charges.

Officials said the survey will also help identify newly constructed properties that have not yet been included in municipal records, ensuring they are brought under the tax net as per applicable rules.

Two New Fields Proposed

The state government plans to propose the inclusion of two additional columns in the Census data collection format relating to property tax and water tax.

Enumerators will collect updated information on the ownership, usage and current status of every property. Buildings that are not registered with municipal authorities despite being liable to pay taxes will be added to official records following verification.

Water Connections to Be Verified

The survey will also verify the status of municipal water connections at each property.

Officials will record whether a water connection exists, whether it is active or inactive, and examine the condition of installed water meters. Property owners will also be asked to provide their property tax and water tax identification numbers, allowing municipal authorities to match the information with existing records.

The exercise is expected to improve billing accuracy and identify properties using municipal water services without proper registration.

GIS-Based Property Records to Be Updated

The Urban Development Department has instructed civic bodies to assign or verify a Unique Property Identification Number (UPID) for every building and update GIS-based property records.

Following field verification, all data will be uploaded to the e-Nagarpalika portal within the prescribed timeline to create a comprehensive digital database of urban properties across Madhya Pradesh.

Boost to Municipal Revenue

Officials believe the initiative will help identify thousands of unregistered properties, improving the accuracy of property tax assessments and water user charges.

The updated database is expected to strengthen municipal finances by increasing tax compliance while also enabling more efficient billing, planning and delivery of civic services.

The state government says the exercise will support better urban governance by ensuring municipal records accurately reflect the current status of residential and commercial properties.