Thiruvananthapuram: It is not just enough to cry hoarse about shrinking revenues, the state government has to keep its side of the bargain. A random check by the Comptroller and Auditor General in a few Commercial Tax Department offices has detected underassessment of tax and other irregularities involving Rs 3,899.7 crore during 2015-16 alone. Besides, arrears under 10 heads of revenue amounted to Rs 2,323.02 crore. In short, administrative inefficiency alone, has cost the state's exchequer a minimum Rs 6,222 crore during 2015-16, more than the amount earmarked for roads in the 2017-18 Budget (Rs 5628 crore) and very nearly the highest single allocation (Rs 6500 crore for coastal highway) in the Budget.
The losses were revealed in the Report of the CAG on Revenue Sector for the year ended March 2016, which was tabled in the Assembly on Monday. And this is just the tip of the iceberg. "The underassessment has been identified in just a few offices of the Commercial Tax Department. If all the circles are probed, the underassessment could be considerably higher," principal accountant general Amar Patnaik said. Test check of the records relating to tax assessments and connected documents in 171 offices of the Taxes Department conducted during 2015-16 showed underassessment of tax and other irregularities involving Rs 3,899.70 crore in 2,240 cases, the CAG report said.
The arrears of revenue, on March 31, 2016, on some principal heads of revenue amounted to Rs 2,323.02 crore, of which Rs 742.03 crore was outstanding for more than five years. Taxes on vehicles had accumulated the highest arrears, Rs 1536.74 crore, of which Rs 313.62 has been outstanding for more than five years. “The Taxes Department said that out of the total arrears of Rs 1,536.74 crore, the dues from the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation is Rs 1,264.33 crore and the balance of Rs 272.41 crore is owed by individuals, private firms and private companies,” the report said.
