ASI gets water, property tax notices for Taj Mahal
Agra (PTI): The Archaeological Survey of India has been asked to pay a water tax of nearly Rs 2 crore and a property tax of about Rs 1.5 lakh for the Taj Mahal, along with a Rs 5-crore service tax for the Agra Fort, in an apparent first-of-its-kind action by local authorities.
The ASI in Agra said the monuments are exempted from such taxes, but Municipal Commissioner Nikhil Tikaram Funde said notices have been issued to several buildings and those eligible will be given the relief.
The Agra Municipal Corporation's notices ask the ASI to pay a water tax of Rs 1.94 crore and a property of Rs 1.47 lakh for the Taj Mahal, and Rs 1.40 lakh as property tax for another monument, the tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah.
The notices were issued for the financial years 2021-22 and 2022-23, and the ASI has been asked to pay up within the next 15 days.
In-addition, the Agra Cantonment Board has sent out a notice to the ASI to recover a service tax of Rs 5 crore for the Agra Fort, an official said.
Agra Circle ASI official protested the action by the municipality.
"The Taj Mahal, tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah and the Agra Fort are national monuments that are exempted from such taxes," said ASI's Agra Circle Superintending Archeologist Rajkumar Patel.
He said the ASI takes care of about 4,000 monuments in the country and has not made any such payment before.
"It is the first time in my knowledge, and as per records, that the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has received notices of Water Tax from the Jal Kal Vibhag part of Agra Municipal Corporation (AMC) and Property Tax from the Agra Municipal Corporation for the national monuments Taj Mahal and the tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah."
"We received a water tax notice of Rs 1.94 crore for the premises of Taj Mahal and nearby areas that are not mentioned clearly, but it is mainly for the Taj Mahal premises. Property tax of Rs 1.47 lakhs for the East Gate of Taj Mahal and Rs 1.40 lakh for the tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah for property tax have been issued."
"In addition, we have also got a notice from the Agra Cantonment Board regarding a service tax of about Rs 5 crore for the Agra Fort. It is also a World Heritage Site and it is exempted from taxes. We have replied to them and mentioned that in the GST regime it is clearly notified that no service tax will be applicable on monuments."
Agra Municipal Commissioner Funde said, "The notice was issued to the ASI for the Taj Mahal and the tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah after the first time assessment process of buildings through the Geographic Information Survey (GIS)."
The Agra Municipal Corporation (AMC) issues notices to every building whether it is a national, government, private or religious place, he said.
"If after that these buildings are eligible for tax exemption, we exempt them from tax," he said. "The same procedure will be followed with the Taj Mahal and the tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah."
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
