Direct tax collection up 14% in Bengal region: Official

February 03 2018

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As much as Rs 42,000 crore revenue was collected in the West Bengal region by the Income Tax department in the current fiscal, an official said on Friday.

"The I-T department of West Bengal region has collected Rs 42,000 crore in the current fiscal recording a rise of 14 per cent in revenue collection," said Chief Commissioner, Income Tax, Kolkata, Bishwanath Jha.

He said the department was on course of meeting its tax collection target, and the growth is partly due to the positive impact of demonetisation.

"Personal income tax buoyancy is much more than corporate income tax," he said at an event on "Union Budget 2018-19: An Analysis" jointly organised by CII and PwC.

The West Bengal region also includes Sikkim.

In revenue collection, the city is in the top bracket of eight Indian cities which include Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru, he said.

Jha also said to spread a message that "very soon no personal interface will be required" with income tax officers.

"As per a new system, assessments will be done via email. You will send queries and get replies through emails only. The idea is not only to ease the entire process and but also to curb malpractices," Jha said, adding that an official gazette notification about this new system will be issued soon.

"By March 31, 2020, the entire process is scheduled to be completed. An enabling provision has already come in this year's budget proposals," he said.

According to him, the country will collect Rs 10 lakh crore by way of direct tax this fiscal. "Given the fact that, the country would collect Rs 1 lakh crore even a decade ago, the growth in the collection of direct tax is phenomenal," he added.