TOP TAXMAN ADVISES BETTER PAY UP

On the eve of the last day of submission of advance tax, chief commissioner of income tax (CCIT), Bihar and Jharkhand, S K Sinha did some tough talking. "The Income-Tax department is a woken up lion... You should better pay up and not force us to take stringent measures," Sinha said at a press meet here on Friday. He said he is aware of the rights and obligations of the department towards I-T payees. He recalled his recent trips to Hajipur and Danapur resulted in the payment of I-T worth Rs 85 lakh. And no prizes for guessing that Indian ODI cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was the highest individual tax payee in Bihar and Jharkhand. The CCIT, however, would not reveal the amount of tax paid by Dhoni. Sinha said the target fixed for Bihar and Jharkhand during 2007-08 had been increased substantially to over Rs 2,746 crore from Rs 1,879 crore in the previous financial year. The Net Corporate Tax collection from April 1, 2007 to March 12, 2008 was over Rs 846 crore, an increase of over 21 per cent from the collection during the corresponding period last year. In the Private Income Tax category, the department collected over Rs 1,064 crore in the same period compared to Rs 769 crore last year. Sinha said the department has increased the number of surveys it conducts and this has resulted in an additional tax collection of over Rs 12 crore. The pace of search and seizure operations conducted in the state of Bihar and Jharkhand has also been increased, resulting in better tax collections. Commissioner of Income Tax (TDS) Ujjwal Singh said TDS collection has increased by 45 per cent with the Patna office accounting for Rs 705 crore, Ranchi office for Rs 642 crore and Muzaffarpur office for Rs 40 crore. The department has attributed the dramatic rise of I-T collection to amendments to IT rules, greater awareness among I-T payees and buoyancy in the market. – www.timesofindia.indiaimes.com