CBDT raises alarm as direct tax collection remains short of 15%; officials asked to pull up socks to achieve target

New Delhi: The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has rung alarm bells and has asked the Income Tax Department to go for a major assault as the direct tax collection target remains short of about 15 percent, with the financial year closing less than a week away. On 26 March, CBDT member (revenue) Neena Kumar shot off a letter to all the regional chiefs of the department stating that the tax collection figures have “been reviewed and it is seen that as against the Budget collection target of Rs 12 lakh crore, only 85.1 percent of the target at Rs 10.21 lakh crore has been collected as on 23 March.” The officer, who is responsible to supervise I-T department’s tax collection work across the country, underlined the areas that are sluggish vis-a-vis direct tax collections obtained from personal, corporate and advance tax categories. [caption id=“attachment_6013191” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters.[/caption] “The minor head-wise analysis indicates worsening trend of negative growth in regular collections at -6.9 percent as against -5.2 percent in the last week. This is an alarming situation which needs immediate attention,” Kumar wrote in the letter. The officer expressed CBDT’s disappointment at this situation and has asked the supervisory tax officials to pull up their socks and ensure no stone remains unturned to achieve the target. The CBDT frames policy for the I-T department and is also its controlling authority that functions from the North Block in the finance ministry. “You are aware that regular assessment tax is bench-mark of performance as it is based upon quality of demand raised which can further be converted into actual collections,” Kumar wrote in the letter. “Board (the CBDT) has discussed strategies through various communications with you (senior officials) and it was expected that by this time your strategies would have succeeded resulting into improved collections. However, the figures of collection give a different account,” she added. She asked the department to take “all possible actions urgently, especially with respect to recovery of arrear and current demand, so as to achieve the targets for collection.” The CBDT has been worried over the direct tax collection work for quite some time and board chairman P C Mody had recently held a video-conference with the top brass of the department across the country and discussed strategies to boost the collection figures to be achieved by the end of the 2018-19 fiscal on 31 March. Both Mody and Kumar are undertaking daily updates on the issue. They are monitoring advance tax and arrear collections, enforcement action to check tax evasion and subsequent surrender of undisclosed income, a senior official said.