The Orissa government plans to introduce e-filing of returns and e-payment of tax for the dealers in the state. The commercial tax department will hold discussion with the state Information Technology (IT) department for implementing the plan.
The new system is proposed to be implemented over next 6 months and will enable dealers to file returns and pay taxes from their offices, state finance minister Prafulla Chandra Ghadai said. Talking to the media after the state level advisory meeting on the Value Added Tax (VAT), Ghadai said, the government will examine the proposal of industry chambers to reduce the rate of VAT on electrical items, coconut oil, flywood, maize, automobile spares and hardware items from existing 12.5 per cent to 4 per cent.
Stating that out of 1,24,906 dealers in the state, 47 per cent are filing return, he said, the balance 53 per cent dealers are defaulters. The state government will launch a special drive to register the dealers. It has been decided to observe the month of November as ‘the month of registration’.
In line with the state level advisory committee, range level advisory committees will be constituted in all 12 commercial tax ranges. While these committees will sit twice a year, the first meeting is slated to be held by September-end. The state level advisory committee on VAT will be restructured to accommodate representatives of Central Public Sector Undertakings and State Public Sector Enterprises. The meeting, which discussed the issue of migration to Goods and Services Tax platform, decided to take the industry chambers into confidence after the final shape of the proposed regime is communicated by the Centre. The interest of the state and the traders will not be compromised, Ghadai assured.
Meanwhile, collection of commercial taxes during the first five months of the current fiscal increased by 1.82 per cent to reach Rs 2,041 crore compared to Rs 2004 crore in the corresponding period of 2008-09.
