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Time of India
8 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
'I-T dept ensures strict confidentiality of data'
CBDT chairman Ravi Agrawal The income tax department adheres to strict confidentiality of taxpayer data, says CBDT chairman Ravi Agrawal and asserts that stringent internal controls are in place to uphold confidentiality and integrity. In an interview to TOI, Agrawal says the powers to access digital devices during search and survey operations are merely being updated in the new I-T Bill to reflect the digital age. Excerpts: How will the new I-T Act help the common taxpayer? The provisions of law will become far more simpler for any taxpayer to read and understand. The dependence on a professional to understand the law is expected to see some correction. The use of formulae, tables and consolidation of provisions will enable easier compliance for taxpayers and professionals. The tax department has access to enormous amounts of data and the bill provides power to the department to access social media accounts for investigation purposes. How will the department ensure privacy of data? The I-T Bill, 2025 only re-states and makes explicit the powers already implicit in the Income-Tax Act 1961 under section 132. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 15 most beautiful women in the world Undo It is important to understand that these provisions are strictly applicable only during search and survey operations. They are not meant to breach the online privacy of common taxpayers, even if their case is under scrutiny. The powers to access digital devices and information during search and survey operations have always existed and are merely being updated to reflect the digital age. Clause 247 of the bill, which allows overriding access codes, is a modernisation of these existing provisions. With financial activities increasingly moving online, including digital banking, cryptocurrency, and cloud storage, these powers are intended to combat sophisticated methods of tax evasion that utilise internet-based tools and technology. Regarding data security, CBDT is acutely aware of the sensitivity of the financial data it handles. Our data collection and analysis are strictly for the purpose of tax administration and are governed by the provisions of I-T Act, 1961. Stringent internal controls have been instituted to uphold confidentiality and integrity, with access to taxpayer data strictly controlled and monitored. The principle of "need-to-know" is followed. The faceless nature of core procedures such as assessments and appeals introduces a layer of anonymity by design. Cases are randomly allocated through an automated system, ensuring neither the taxpayer nor the assessing officer knows each other's identity. This reinforces a neutral, fair, and objective approach, minimising the risk of selective targeting. Risk assessment uses identity-blind, rule-based algorithms. The focus of the department now is building taxpayer trust but how will the new powers impact this? I-T Bill, 2025 provides for no new or additional powers. The department will continue to work on a "Trust First and Scrutinise Later" philosophy, recognising that most taxpayers are honest. The department prefers the "nudge" approach for minor discrepancies, while intrusive steps are for cases with credible intelligence or significant evidence of large-scale tax evasion, concealment of income, or involvement in illicit activities. The goal is to create a deterrent effect for willful defaulters while fostering a climate of trust for the honest taxpayer. By clearly defining the scope of these powers to serious evasion cases, the department aims to assure honest taxpayers that they will not be arbitrarily targeted. How would you assure the taxpayers on this? There is no question of any general surveillance of common taxpayers or their social media accounts. The fundamental approach remains "Trust First," with intrusive actions being a last resort only for proven, large-scale evasion cases, not for honest taxpayers. Even when an algorithm flags a case for scrutiny, subsequent proceedings involve human application of mind and a review mechanism to ensure fairness. Taxpayers also retain the right to appeal any order they believe is incorrect. What has been the role of technology in stepping up refunds? End-to-end automation of ITR processing, including real-time challan validation and automated refund processing, has been implemented. Bank account validation ensures seamless refund disbursal. The average refund processing time has reduced from 93 days in FY 2013-14 to 17 days in 2024-25. Faster refund processing has significantly improved the taxpayer experience and confidence in the system. How is the department using AI, ML and blockchain technology to maximise revenues and plug loopholes? The use of AI within the I-T department is limited now. Going forward, AI will play a critical role in detecting and curbing shell companies, black money, and benami transactions. The upcoming projects of the department such as Insight 2.0 aims at wider use of AI. For example, AI will be used in various areas such as fraud and anomaly detection, pattern recognition, trend identification, predictive modelling, processing of unstructured data. Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now


The Print
3 days ago
- Business
- The Print
Par panel report on new Income Tax Bill, 2025 to be tabled in Lok Sabha on Monday
The Committee has made 285 suggestions and at its meeting on July 16 adopted the report on new I-T Bill, 2025, which will now be tabled in the House for further action. The 31-member Select Committee, chaired by BJP leader Baijayant Panda, was appointed by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to scrutinise The new Income Tax Bill, 2025, which was introduced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 13 in the Lok Sabha. New Delhi, Jul 20 (PTI) A report of the parliamentary committee set up to scrutinise the new Income Tax Bill, 2025, which would replace the six-decade old Income Tax Act, is scheduled to be tabled in the Lok Sabha on Monday. The simplified Income Tax Bill, which is half the size of the 1961 Income Tax Act, seeks to achieve tax certainty by minimising the scope of litigation and fresh interpretation. The new bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha, has a word count of 2.6 lakh, lower than 5.12 lakh in the I-T Act. The number of sections is 536, as against 819 effective sections in the existing law. The number of chapters has also been halved to 23 from 47, according to the FAQs (frequently asked questions) issued by the I-T department. The Income Tax Bill 2025 has 57 tables, compared to 18 in the existing Act and removed 1,200 provisos and 900 explanations. Provisions relating to exemptions and TDS/TCS have been made crispier in the Bill by putting them in a tabular format, while the chapter for not-for-profit organisations has been made comprehensive with use of plain language. As a result of this, the word count has come down by 34,547. In a taxpayer-friendly move, the Bill replaces the term 'previous year' as mentioned in the Income Tax Act, 1961 with 'tax year'. Also, the concept of assessment year has been done away with. Currently, for income earned in the previous year (say 2023-24), tax is paid in assessment year (say 2024-25). This previous year and assessment year (AY) concept has been removed and only tax year under the simplified bill has been brought in. While introducing the Bill in the Lok Sabha, Sitharaman had said that 'substantial changes' have been made in the Bill. The number of words have been halved from 5.12 lakh, and sections reduced from 819 to 236. Following introduction, the Bill was referred to the select committee of the Lok Sabha and the committee was mandated to submit its report by the first day of next session. The Monsoon session of Parliament is scheduled to sit from July 21 to August 21, 2025. PTI JD CS HVA This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
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Business Standard
4 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Parl panel report on new Income Tax Bill, 2025 to be tabled in LS on Monday
A report of the parliamentary committee set up to scrutinise the new Income Tax Bill, 2025, which would replace the six-decade old Income Tax Act, is scheduled to be tabled in the Lok Sabha on Monday. The 31-member Select Committee, chaired by BJP leader Baijayant Panda, was appointed by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to scrutinise The new Income Tax Bill, 2025, which was introduced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 13 in the Lok Sabha. The Committee has made 285 suggestions and at its meeting on July 16 adopted the report on new I-T Bill, 2025, which will now be tabled in the House for further action. The simplified Income Tax Bill, which is half the size of the 1961 Income Tax Act, seeks to achieve tax certainty by minimising the scope of litigation and fresh interpretation. The new bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha, has a word count of 260,000, lower than 512,000 in the I-T Act. The number of sections is 536, as against 819 effective sections in the existing law. The number of chapters has also been halved to 23 from 47, according to the FAQs (frequently asked questions) issued by the I-T department. The Income Tax Bill 2025 has 57 tables, compared to 18 in the existing Act and removed 1,200 provisos and 900 explanations. Provisions relating to exemptions and TDS/TCS have been made crispier in the Bill by putting them in a tabular format, while the chapter for not-for-profit organisations has been made comprehensive with use of plain language. As a result of this, the word count has come down by 34,547. In a taxpayer-friendly move, the Bill replaces the term 'previous year' as mentioned in the Income Tax Act, 1961 with 'tax year'. Also, the concept of assessment year has been done away with. Currently, for income earned in the previous year (say 2023-24), tax is paid in assessment year (say 2024-25). This previous year and assessment year (AY) concept has been removed and only tax year under the simplified bill has been brought in. While introducing the Bill in the Lok Sabha, Sitharaman had said that "substantial changes" have been made in the Bill. The number of words have been halved from 5.12 lakh, and sections reduced from 819 to 236. Following introduction, the Bill was referred to the select committee of the Lok Sabha and the committee was mandated to submit its report by the first day of next session. The Monsoon session of Parliament is scheduled to sit from July 21 to August 21, 2025.


New Indian Express
4 days ago
- Business
- New Indian Express
New income tax bill: Parliamentary panel to table its report in Lok Sabha on July 21
NEW DELHI: A report of the parliamentary committee set up to scrutinise the new Income Tax Bill, 2025, which would replace the six-decade old Income Tax Act, is scheduled to be tabled in the Lok Sabha on Monday. The 31-member Select Committee, chaired by BJP leader Baijayant Panda, was appointed by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to scrutinise The new Income Tax Bill, 2025, which was introduced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 13 in the Lok Sabha. The Committee has made 285 suggestions and at its meeting on July 16 adopted the report on new I-T Bill, 2025, which will now be tabled in the House for further action. The simplified Income Tax Bill, which is half the size of the 1961 Income Tax Act, seeks to achieve tax certainty by minimising the scope of litigation and fresh interpretation. The new bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha, has a word count of 2.6 lakh, lower than 5.12 lakh in the I-T Act. The number of sections is 536, as against 819 effective sections in the existing law. The number of chapters has also been halved to 23 from 47, according to the FAQs (frequently asked questions) issued by the I-T department. The Income Tax Bill 2025 has 57 tables, compared to 18 in the existing Act and removed 1,200 provisos and 900 explanations. Provisions relating to exemptions and TDS/TCS have been made crispier in the Bill by putting them in a tabular format, while the chapter for not-for-profit organisations has been made comprehensive with use of plain language. As a result of this, the word count has come down by 34,547. In a taxpayer-friendly move, the Bill replaces the term 'previous year' as mentioned in the Income Tax Act, 1961 with 'tax year'. Also, the concept of assessment year has been done away with. Currently, for income earned in the previous year (say 2023-24), tax is paid in assessment year (say 2024-25). This previous year and assessment year (AY) concept has been removed and only tax year under the simplified bill has been brought in. While introducing the Bill in the Lok Sabha, Sitharaman had said that "substantial changes" have been made in the Bill. The number of words have been halved from 5.12 lakh, and sections reduced from 819 to 236. Following introduction, the Bill was referred to the select committee of the Lok Sabha and the committee was mandated to submit its report by the first day of next session. The Monsoon session of Parliament is scheduled to sit from July 21 to August 21, 2025.


Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
New Income Tax Bill, 2025: Parliamentary panel report to be tabled in Lok Sabha on Monday
A report of the parliamentary committee set up to scrutinise the new Income Tax Bill, 2025, which would replace the six-decade old Income Tax Act, is scheduled to be tabled in the Lok Sabha on Monday. The 31-member Select Committee, chaired by BJP leader Baijayant Panda , was appointed by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to scrutinise The new Income Tax Bill, 2025, which was introduced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 13 in the Lok Sabha. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Select a Course Category Project Management Digital Marketing Data Analytics healthcare Public Policy Data Science Healthcare Leadership Artificial Intelligence Product Management others PGDM MBA Finance CXO Operations Management Degree Management MCA Data Science Others Cybersecurity Design Thinking Technology Skills you'll gain: Project Planning & Governance Agile Software Development Practices Project Management Tools & Software Techniques Scrum Framework Duration: 12 Weeks Indian School of Business Certificate Programme in IT Project Management Starts on Jun 20, 2024 Get Details Skills you'll gain: Portfolio Management Project Planning & Risk Analysis Strategic Project/Portfolio Selection Adaptive & Agile Project Management Duration: 6 Months IIT Delhi Certificate Programme in Project Management Starts on May 30, 2024 Get Details The Committee has made 285 suggestions and at its meeting on July 16 adopted the report on new I-T Bill, 2025, which will now be tabled in the House for further action. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Up to 70% off | Shop Sale Libas Undo The simplified Income Tax Bill, which is half the size of the 1961 Income Tax Act, seeks to achieve tax certainty by minimising the scope of litigation and fresh interpretation. The new bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha, has a word count of 2.6 lakh, lower than 5.12 lakh in the I-T Act. The number of sections is 536, as against 819 effective sections in the existing law. Live Events The number of chapters has also been halved to 23 from 47, according to the FAQs (frequently asked questions) issued by the I-T department. The Income Tax Bill 2025 has 57 tables, compared to 18 in the existing Act and removed 1,200 provisos and 900 explanations. Provisions relating to exemptions and TDS/TCS have been made crispier in the Bill by putting them in a tabular format, while the chapter for not-for-profit organisations has been made comprehensive with use of plain language. As a result of this, the word count has come down by 34,547. In a taxpayer-friendly move, the Bill replaces the term 'previous year' as mentioned in the Income Tax Act, 1961 with 'tax year'. Also, the concept of assessment year has been done away with. Currently, for income earned in the previous year (say 2023-24), tax is paid in assessment year (say 2024-25). This previous year and assessment year (AY) concept has been removed and only tax year under the simplified bill has been brought in. While introducing the Bill in the Lok Sabha, Sitharaman had said that "substantial changes" have been made in the Bill. The number of words have been halved from 5.12 lakh, and sections reduced from 819 to 236. Following introduction, the Bill was referred to the select committee of the Lok Sabha and the committee was mandated to submit its report by the first day of next session. The Monsoon session of Parliament is scheduled to sit from July 21 to August 21, 2025.