The Punjab government, which is facing a cash crunch, has decided to pause its plan to raise collector rates of land in all districts to match market prices — at least for now.

Officials say the move has been shelved due to negative public sentiment towards the ruling party after the controversial land pooling policy, which has now been withdrawn.

Sources told The Tribune that proposals from several deputy commissioners to increase collector rates have been put on hold. For instance, Ludhiana’s proposal to raise rates by 25–40% is still pending. The district had seen the strongest farmers’ protests against the land pooling plan.

In Bathinda, rates have already gone up by 5%, but further hikes in high-end areas are awaiting approval from the Revenue Department.

So far, collector rates have been increased by 5–50% in 12 districts — Amritsar, Barnala, Fazilka, Faridkot, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Moga, Malerkotla, Pathankot, Ropar, Sangrur, and Nawanshahr. Patiala had seen hikes of up to 100% last year, leaving little scope for further revision.

In Amritsar, rates rose by 5–60%, with smaller hikes inside the city (5–30%) and bigger jumps in areas like Aerocity and DR Enclave (50–60%). In Jalandhar, the increase is 5% within the city but 20% in outer areas like Nurmahal. Nawanshahr saw a 10–30% rise, while Hoshiarpur city recorded a 20% hike.

The government had aimed to boost revenue from stamp duty and registration fees to ₹7,000 crore this year, up from ₹5,750 crore last year. Officials say raising rates helps curb black money in property deals and ensures the state gets its fair share of revenue.