Direct tax revenue collections in Kerala grew by 57.5% in the past five years, according to Pranab Kumar Das, Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax (Kerala).
Speaking at the laying of foundation for a nine-storey IT building adjacent to the existing one on IS Press Road, Mr. Das said while revenue collections from Kerala for the financial year 2013-14 had stood at ₹9,993 crore, it had risen to ₹15,740 crore during 2017-18.
The growth for 2017-18 alone was stated to be 20.5%. The number of assessees added during the financial year stood at 2,94,171 with the total number of tax-paying assessees in the State standing at 16,64,124 now. Mr. Das said increased use of information technology had added zing to the functioning of the department.
‘Welcome drop’
B. Murali Kumar, Director General of Income Tax (Investigation), Kochi, said while there was a huge increase in direct tax revenue, there was a welcome drop in the cost of realising the collections to a global record of below 0.5%. He urged the authorities to spend more money and resources on enhancing infrastructural facilities of the department and to better the work environment.
P. Nageswara Rao, Chief Commissioner of GST, Kochi, stressed the need for continued monitoring of the implementation of the project and discussions with National Building Construction Corporation, the contractor for constructing the department’s headquarters in Kochi, so that the final product would be of quality and value.
