Govt explores bonds to tap black money

RUN UP TO THE BUDGET 2004-05

Amnesty for tax evaders ruled out.

The finance ministry is exploring the option of launching long-tenure bearer bonds or infrastructure bonds to unearth unaccounted money and use it to fund the country's development needs.

According to government sources, unlike the Voluntary Disclosure of Income Scheme, 1999, the bearer bonds will not provide amnesty to tax evaders.

While the revenue department would not seek any details on the origin of funds being invested in bearer bonds, it would be free to go after money launderers in the future, they said.

The funds raised through the bearer bonds could be locked in for a long tenure, say 10 years, the sources said. Tax experts noted that the Centre could offer a nominal interest on the bonds.

"Such a scheme can partially suck out the unaccounted money in circulation and simultaneously help the government fund its development programmes," a source said.

While the ministry possesses only dated information on the quantum of black money in the country based on a study by the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP) in the early 1980s, independent estimates put the figure at as much as 40 per cent of the gross national product.

Tax experts said except for VDIS 1997, other amnesty schemes failed to generate a response.

Five amnesty schemes in the past have yielded not more than Rs 700 crore, they pointed out, adding that Yashwant Sinha's Kar Vivad Samadhan Scheme, too, came in for severe criticism from the Comptroller and Auditor General.

The experts noted that a bearer bond scheme was last launched in 1980-81 when R Venkataraman was finance minister. The scheme offered an interest rate of 2 per cent and the money was locked in for 10 years.

The Congress government under Indira Gandhi had raised almost Rs 1,000 crore then, equivalent to Rs 10,000 crore at today's prices.

The National Democratic Alliance government, too, had discussed a bond scheme two years ago to raise funds for the infrastructure sector.

Preliminary discussions were held with some financial institutions but the idea was dropped later due to lack of consensus.

The United Progressive Alliance's common minimum programme (CMP) unveiled in May too had called for introduction of special schemes to unearth black money and assets. This was being seen as an additional measure to increase tax revenues.