The new Chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), PC Mody, last week asked the income tax department to pull up its socks to “maximize” revenue collection and enlarge the basket of tax-paying people in the country.
The new CBDT Chief also asked the department to make special efforts in redressing the grievances and the issues faced by “small taxpayers”, and work with greater transparency and accountability.
Mr. P C Mody was appointed as CBDT on 15th February after the then Chief Sushil Kumar appointed as Election Commissioner of India.
“Our immediate priority will be maximizing revenue collection. We need to widen and deepen the tax base, ensuring simultaneously, the optimum utilization of physical as well as human resources,” Mr. Mody said in an official letter to the regional chiefs of the tax department across the country.
In the February 26 letter, accessed by news agency Press Trust of India, he adds that the exercise to enlarge the tax base in the country “must be done without any harassment or high handedness on the part of officers or officials”.
Mr. Mody had a special word for the taxman to be impartial and fair in their work.
“Our conduct must be impeccable, friendly, yet objective – without fear or favor – as we move towards becoming a non-adversarial regime,” he said.
He said the “timely delivery of quality taxpayer services shall be another prime area of focus (for the department)”.
“Continuous and concerted efforts must be made to address and redress all public grievances within the prescribed time limit.”
“Systemic reforms shall continue to be undertaken, especially to redress grievances of smaller taxpayers, such as increased automation of processes, e-filing, centralized processing of tax returns, and other bulk operations” he added.
The new CBDT chief said expediting dispute resolution, taxpayers” education about subjects of tax compliance and litigation management shall also be “areas of focus and concern” for the taxman in the days to come.
“We shall continue to strive towards greater transparency, accountability and improved voluntary compliance as we roll out a digital administration,” he said.
Mr Mody, who will be in office till June this year, also had a word for his personnel and staff in the letter.
“The board (CBDT) shall also make all efforts for ensuring timely provision of service needs of its officials, with an aim to improve their efficiency, output, and morale.”
