HRD Directorate in Income Tax – but what about CBEC?
The Finance Minister, P Chidambaram, yesterday promised a more taxpayer friendly income tax department with the newly created directorate on human resource development ( HRD ) in CBDT set to within the next two years “significantly transform” the department from the point of view of the taxpayer.
He announced that the new directorate on HRD has been created in the CBDT to develop, train and reorient the human resources in the tax department and accordingly help improve taxpayer services.
“The department will become more taxpayer friendly, more customer oriented and geared to collect direct taxes causing the least amount of inconvenience or hardship to the taxpayer. The department will increasingly focus on voluntary compliance and take steps to improve such compliance. Compliance has already improved remarkably in the last two years”
The new directorate would be headed by a Director General of Income Tax ( HRD ) who will be an officer of the level of chief commissioner of Income Tax and will be located in New Delhi .
According to the FM, “Direct taxes are taxes of the future. The CBDT must be reorganised and reengineered into a modern, efficient and well-equipped organisation. Its most important resource will be human resource and that resource must be carefully developed, trained and reoriented to meet the challenges of a growing economy”
The HRD directorate would develop and design strategic human resource plans, policies and processes aligned to the goal and vision of the income tax department for ensuring optimal resource mobilisation and delivery of taxpayer services.
It would assess and determine the job requirements, job profiles and skills needed for various jobs in the income tax department and make projections of human resource requirements. The directorate would also assist the Board in developing and implementing proper human resources development policies including those relating to recruitment, promotions, performance appraisals, transfers and succession plans.
But why no such directorate is created in CBEC?
In the meantime Direct tax collections have for the first time crossed the Rs. 2 Lakh Crores mark, overtaking the indirect tax collections. It is likely to cross the Rs. 3 lakhs Crores by the year end.
“People would be better off if they paid me more taxes” - Chidambaram