The Income Tax department has set a target for collecting Rs 25,455 crore from Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, up from Rs 21,706 crore mopped up last year.
Talking to reporters here, Prasanna Kumar Dash, the principal chief commissioner of Income Tax for MP and Chhattisgarh region said for the nation as a while the target is Rs 11.50 trillion, up from nearly Rs 10 trillion.
"The department has given us a 17.49 per cent more collection target for the region this fiscal year at Rs 25,455 crore, over last fiscal year at Rs 21,706 crore," Dash said. He said at present there are 29 lakh tax payers in MP-CG region. In FY18, 6.31 lakh new persons have filed their income tax returns.
The first income tax office of MP region was established in 1939 at Rajnandgaon, currently in Chhattisgarh. At present there over 60 offices in the region with over 400 officers and 1,200 employees.
In recent past, in MP & CG, the department has initiated different programmes that bore fruitful results.
They included- Kardata Vistar Yojna, under which, several measures like outreach program, Seminars on Tax laws and Procedures, presentation with different Trades Associations and Tax Deductors, Nukkad Natak, Aayakar Rath Pledge letter Signing, Campaign through publicity etc have been undertaken to add new tax payers and to increase the tax base.
Similarly, in Kardata Sangrahan Yojna, measures like contact with assessees having outstanding demand, Timely Deposit of Advances Tax, Self Assessment Taxes etc and recovery through sale, attachment and arrest of defaulters were undertaken to recover long outstanding arrear demands and to boost the collection.
Besides, MP Free legal Aid Services Cell was created for the first time in India to help needy tax payers in resolving their grievances and helping them by providing free legal help. The Chartered Accountants, Advocates and retired Income Tax employees have been empanelled who agreed to give free seminar to tax payers referred to them.