A new tax intelligence unit has been set up in Punjab to boost tax collections by improving compliance, Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Cheema said on Tuesday.
Cheema said the tax intelligence unit will work directly under the control of the Taxation Commissioner, while the additional commissioner (Enforcement) and the director (Investigation) will monitor day-to-day functioning.
"One assistant commissioner, three state taxation officers, and six taxation inspectors will work full time in the TIU," Cheema said, adding that special data analysts, legal experts, cyber experts and system managers were being recruited to make TIU professionally competent.
A state-level facility with all new technologies and data analysis mechanisms would be set up at the taxation office in Patiala.
"It will be equipped with the latest hardware, software and artificial intelligence tools for analysis of data being generated by the GST portal, e-way bill portal, and toll data of NHAI.
"The major emphasis will be on identifying and taking strictest action on habitual tax evaders, persons involved in fake billing business, accumulation of bogus input tax credit, etc," the state finance minister said.
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He further said the state government has been working on the department's proposal to convert all mobile wings of state GST into state prevention and intelligence units (SIPU).
"These SIPUs will be having nine different field units in various parts of the state and on Central Unit at Taxation Office, Patiala," Cheema said, adding that these units would especially work in coordination with TIU to undertake precise action by way of inspections, searches and seizures against big tax evaders.
The state government has also decided to use services of GST Prime, the latest data analysis tool created by NIC, he added.
He noted that GST Prime would help in the creation of specific data analysis reports on various parameters, and the strictest action would be initiated as per these reports.
The minister said the department has also undertaken a lot of activities to guide and facilitate genuine taxpayers so that they can do their business in a better way.
Reiterating that Bhagwant Mann-led the government's commitment to improving the fiscal health of the state, Cheema said the state government has received more than Rs 250 crore through enforcement actions by way of inspections and checking of vehicles; using data mining for recovery of pending dues from tax evaders and conducting an audit of select high-volume taxpayers.
During the regime of the previous government, the department had received Rs 600 crores in the last two years, the minister said.
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