CBEC Notifies 'Principal Chief Commissioner' in Rules and Notifications

By Vijay Kumar

THE Finance Act 2014 has recognised the posts of Principal Chief Commissioner and Principal Commissioner in the Income Tax Act, Customs Act, Central Excise Act and the Finance Act, 1994 (Service Tax).

Now the Government has notified these officers for the purpose of the rules made or deemed to have been or in any other notifications, instructions, decisions, or orders, issued or made under the Acts or rules for Customs, Central Excise and Service Tax.

The notifications are so carefully worded as to not leave any loose ends: The Central Excise Notification reads as:

In exercise of the powers conferred by sections 5A, 37, 37A and 37B of the Central Excise Act, 1944, (1 of 1944) and of all other powers enabling it in this behalf, the Central Government hereby directs that the references to the authorities specified in column (2) of the Table below, in the rules made or deemed to have been made under the said sections or in any other notifications, instructions, decisions, or orders, issued or made under the said sections or rules or under any other section of the said Act, shall, unless the context otherwise requires, be construed as references to the authorities specified in column (3) of the said Table, namely:-

Table

Sl. No.	Existing reference	Substituted reference
(1)	(2)	(3)
1.	Chief Commissioner	Principal Chief Commissioner or Chief Commissioner, as the case may be
2.	Commissioner	Principal Commissioner or Commissioner, as the case may be

The Customs and Service Tax notifications are worded similarly.

Under the new disposition, a zone is headed by either a Chief Commissioner or a Principal Chief Commissioner and a Commissionerate is headed by a Commissioner or a Principal Commissioner. With so many Commissioners around, people will be thoroughly confused as to which Commissioner is higher than which and nothing can offend a babu more than getting his rank right, especially if you are wrong towards the lower side. This is the hierarchy in CBDT and CBEC:

1. Chairman, Board
2. Members, Board
3. Principal Chief Commissioner
4. Chief Commissioner
5. Principal Commissioner
6. Commissioner
7. Additional Commissioner
8. Joint Commissioner
9. Deputy Commissioner
10. Assistant Commissioner

The Chairman and Members of the Board and the Principal Chief Commissioner get the same salary, but they are of different ranks in the ladder.

The Principal Commissioner is not the boss of the Commissioner but gets a higher salary - but you are ruined if you call him just a Commissioner!

Additional Commissioner gets about Rs. 40,000 more than a Joint Commissioner but the JC is not his subordinate and the powers wasted on both the ranks are the same.

The Assistant Commissioner gets a promotion as a Deputy Commissioner and both of them have exactly the same powers and functions. Sometimes the Divisions are headed by Deputy Commissioners and sometimes by Assistant Commissioners and you should be very careful when writing to a Divisional Head. Be sure to find out whether he is a Deputy Commissioner or Assistant Commissioner. No problem if you address an Assistant Commissioner as Deputy Commissioner but in the converse - if you address a Deputy Commissioner as Assistant Commissioner, you will rue the moment you committed the indiscretion.

There is still scope for expansion for the next cadre review. There can still be posts like Additional Principal Chief Commissioner, Additional Deputy Commissioner, Additional Assistant Commissioner, etc. In some Directorates under the CBEC there is already a post of Additional Assistant Director! (this is a glorified Inspector)

Notification No. , Dated: August 06, 2014