Belgaum Municipal Corporation is projected to generate ₹442.54 crore in revenue this financial year, with estimated expenditure pegged at ₹441.62 crore. The budget, which proposes savings of ₹92.32 lakh through expenditure control, was tabled on Wednesday.
At a meeting chaired by Mayor Mangesh Pawar, Reshma Hoogara, Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Taxation, Finance and Appeals, presented the 2026–27 budget outlining the city’s development roadmap. Prior to the presentation, she submitted the budget documents to the Mayor and Deputy Mayor Vani Joshi.
As in previous years, emphasis has been placed on essential services such as city cleanliness, infrastructure development across all 58 wards, electricity bill payments, and salaries of civic staff.
Key allocations include:
SFC Electricity Grant – ₹62.6 crore
SFC Open Fund – ₹3.22 crore
16th Finance Commission Grant – ₹21 crore (estimated)
A significant share of the budget has been directed towards sanitation and staff wages. Outsourced cleaning services have been allocated ₹38.25 crore, while salaries of directly recruited civic workers stand at ₹11 crore. Lunch allowances for civic staff amount to ₹2 crore. Scientific solid waste management has been allotted ₹4 crore, streetlight maintenance ₹50 lakh, and maintenance of roads, drains, and footpaths ₹6.95 crore.
Additionally, ₹2.10 crore has been earmarked for the construction of sheds and the sterilisation of stray dogs, ₹1 crore for cemetery development, ₹25 lakh for drinking water and future open development works, ₹14.43 lakh for sports activities, and ₹5 crore as a contribution to the Belgaum project.
Infrastructure works across wards are estimated at ₹27 crore, covering new CC roads and sewer construction.
Other capital expenditure includes:
₹22 crore for sewerage repairs, new drains, and community toilets;
₹2 crore for conservation of municipal properties;
₹1.35 crore for park development;
₹1.45 crore for e-office systems, computerisation, and machinery.
Stray dogs get bigger share than drinking water
The issue of stray dogs has persisted in the Smart City for over a decade, with numbers reportedly rising each year. The current budget sets aside ₹2.10 crore for stray dog control and sterilisation.
A similar ₹2 crore allocation was made in the 2024–25 and 2025–26 budgets, yet the dog population has not shown a decline. Notably, the allocation for stray dogs exceeds that for drinking water.
Tax collection drive proposed again
The budget also proposes a renewed campaign to streamline tax collection from all available sources. Similar initiatives were announced in the previous five to six budgets, but anticipated revenue targets were not fully achieved.
Revenue breakup
Total municipal revenue source: ₹85 crore
Property tax collection: ₹7.55 crore
Asset transfer fees and penalties: ₹9.90 crore
Building permit, development and improvement fees: ₹11 crore
Sale of vacant plots: ₹29.75 crore
Solid waste management fee: ₹4 crore
Business licence fees: ₹5 crore
New UGD connections: ₹1.5 crore
Road excavation fee: ₹1.7 crore
Residue removal source: ₹1.3 crore
