Hubli seeks to seize airport

The Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation's (HDMC) move to seize the Hubli airport for recovery of property tax has raised hackles in the region.

The HDMC has issued notice to the Airport Authority of India saying that it will seize the airport if the tax dues of Rs 41 lakh is not paid immediately.

The Hubli airport has been mired in controversy since its inception. Though the airport came up long ago it had lied unused, as the air services did not take off.

There were intermittent services by private airlines from Bangalore to Hubli but it did not continue for long. Thanks to the then Union minister for civil aviation Ananth Kumar the airport came alive with the Deccan Airways starting operation two years ago.

The minister had promised to equip the airport with the night landing facility but that is yet to come.

For the Airport Authority of India the Hubli airport is a liability as the expenditure was much higher than the revenues. It has not paid the municipal tax for the last seven years and the due has accumulated to Rs 41 lakh.

HDMC commissioner Manivannan besides serving the notice to the AAI also published the notice in prominent newspapers stating that the HDMC will seize the movable property of the airport to recover the dues.

The air service users are upset with the move, as it would stop the existing Bangalore-Belgaum-Hubli-Bangalore. They think the seizure of the movable property is too harsh a move. The Hubli arm of Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industry has taken the initiative to settle the issue amicably by holding discussions with the councillors.

The AAI says it is not in a position to pay the tax dues as it had suffered losses all these years. It also questions the validity of HDMC's decision to recover tax dues from an organisation owned by the Central government.

But HDMC commissioner Manivannan does not accept AAI's argument. He said that the rule of law was same to all. "We seize the movable property of an individual when he is a defaulter. Similarly we will seize the property of AAI. I have studied the relevant rules and regulations and nowhere are airports exempted from tax," Manivannan said.

He asserted that the AAI had not bothered to reply to the notices issued in November last. "As a last resort I have issued a public notice. I am here to safeguard the interests of HDMC," he asserted. The commissioner claimed that the AAI has earned a huge profit.

A senior officer expressed surprise over the entire episode and said that it was intriguing that the Centre was trying to revive the airport by sanctioning Rs 63 crore while the local body is trying to stall the working of the airport.