Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed high ranking officials of the CBDT and CBEC at Rajasva Gyan Sangam. He exhorted the officials to incorporate both a ‘sense of urgency,’ and ‘measurability,’ in their performance. He also directed them to fix clear targets to improve the country’s tax administration by 2022. He also instructed the officials to come up with an action plan to eliminate pendency in tax related cases. He emphasized that an environment that instills confidence among honest taxpayers & uproots corruption has to be created
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, inaugurated the Rajasva Gyan Sangam at New Delhi, and addressed the tax administrators of both the Union and State Governments.
The Prime Minister exhorted the officers to improve their work-culture, to incorporate both a “sense of urgency”, and “measurability”, in their performance.
Mentioning the benefits of the GST, the Prime Minister said that besides economic integration of the country, and transparency in the system; more than 17 lakh new traders have been brought into the indirect tax system within two months.
The Prime Minister said that in order to enable all traders to take maximum benefit of GST, we should work towards ensuring that all traders, including even relatively smaller traders with a turnover below Rs. 20 lakhs, should register with the GST system. He asked the officers to make efforts in this regard by designing a system for this category.
The Prime Minister asked the officers to fix clear targets to improve the country’s tax administration by 2022, the 75th anniversary of independence. He said that the Union Government is working towards creation of an environment which shatters the confidence of the corrupt, and instills confidence and trust among the honest taxpayer. In this regard, he mentioned steps taken by the Union Government, such as demonetization, and implementation of stringent laws against black money and benami property.
Union Government is working towards creating an environment that instills confidence among honest taxpayers & uproots corruption.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 1, 2017
The Prime Minister said human interface must be kept to a minimum in the tax administration’s dealings. He asked for a push to be given to “e-assessment” and anonymity of proceedings using technology, so that vested interests do not impede the due course of law.
Shri Narendra Modi expressed his dismay at the huge pendency of tax-related cases in adjudication and appeal. He said big sums of money that is locked up in these cases, could have been used for the welfare of the poor. He asked officers to come up with an action plan during the Rajasva Gyan Sangam, to eliminate pendency.
Also urged officials to solve pendency of tax-related cases in adjudication and appeal.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 1, 2017
The Prime Minister asked officers to use data analytical tools to proactively track and determine undeclared income and wealth. He said that though efforts to increase tax revenue are made by officers each year, the estimated amounts of tax that should accrue to the system, are often not realised. The Prime Minister asked officers to come up with a time-bound solution to ‘tax raised and not realised’, and asserted that the honest cannot continue to pay the price for the misdeeds of the dishonest. In this regard he also suggested complete reworking of human resource management in the tax departments to strengthen the data analytics and investigation wing.
Urged tax officials to use data analytical tools to proactively track and determine undeclared income and wealth. This will be beneficial.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 1, 2017
The Prime Minister hoped that the two-day Gyan Sangam would come up with concrete ideas to improve the tax administration.
yes the PM is correct in asking the officers of the CBDT and CBEC to change the attitude to wards the tax payers. Respected PM kindly ask the GSTN officials ( OLD VAT OFFICERS) also to change the attitude AND GIVE A CLEAN AND NON corrupt administration with out any bias on the tax payers and the professionals. The huge task of gst compliance will create a good self employment to the GST practitioners and solve the unemployment problem specially in urban and semi urban areas. Extend the skill development program and utilise the services of the Tax Bars and the Tax Practitioners Associations in training the unemployed B.Com graduates to become GST practitoners and the compliance rate of the GST will increase and collection of the revenue will also increase drastically.The nation with such a huge change in the indirect tax policy can not depend on only one class of professionals. The District wise GST coordination committees may be fomred with members from tax professionals and the officers and the issues can be sorted out at the gross root level and incase of difficulties the same may be brougt to the notice of the GST council.Unless the awareness of the indirect tax is built up from the gross root level the GST officials nor the professionals only can to help in improving the GST collections from every corner of the country.As seen even today the tax officilas are unable to reach to some places where there is huge tax collection potential. These are my personal views.Unless the GST portal is made ready 100% the penalty and interest should not be charged. The implementation and testing of the software is going side by side and hence the dealers and professionals are facing the problem in getting connectted to the GSTN portal.