Driven by the increase in tax collection last year, the Income Tax Department has set a target of surpassing Rs 10,000 crore revenue collection in the current 2013-14 fiscal.
Odisha Division had achieved a significant 18 per cent growth in tax collection in 2012-13, netting more than Rs 8,643 crore against the previous 2011-12 fiscal when the tax collection was around ` 7,337 crore.
Cuttack IT zone has also achieved the target of Rs 225 crore during the 2012-13 fiscal.
However, there has not been any marked increase in the tax payers-base which at around 1.5 per cent of the State’s population continues to be far less than the national average of over three per cent.
The tax payers base needs to be expanded, which can be achieved through a change in image of the IT Department from “adversarial to tax-payer friendly,” member of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) PS Behuria said on Friday.
She inaugurated the Ayakar Bhawan, the new Income Tax building, in the presence of Chief Commissioner of Income Tax, Odisha, Santosh Kumar Srivastava at Tulsipur here on Friday. The six-storey building would come as a huge relief to the tax payers as well as the lawyers and chartered accountants as it will provide all services under one roof.
Earlier, the tax payers, assessees as well as the lawyers and chartered accountants were subjected to great hassles as the IT offices were scattered around the City. While the administrative and TDS sections were located at Arunodaya Nagar, the office of the Commissioner of IT (Appeals) was at Tulsipur.
The new integrated building will accommodate 150 employees and has also specific seating and working areas for the lawyers and chartered accountants.
A State-of-the-art technology driven Ayakar Seva Kendra has also been established in the building.
Commissioner IT, Cuttack, PK Das and CIT (Appeals) NK Pradhan were also present.