Ensure transparency in tax collection: CM to officials

Vijayawada: Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday directed the officials to ensure transparency, accountability and efficiency in tax collection without leaving scope for any legal disputes.

He held a review on revenue earning departments, including excise, revenue, municipal administration, mines, and forest department.

The Chief Minister emphasised on resolving the complaints and objections raised by the taxpayers on a priority basis to have a smooth flow of taxes. He instructed the officials to use state-of-the-art technology to restrict tax evasion and the use of fake bills. In this regard, the authorities informed him that the Data Analytics Centre was being strengthened.

He said that strict measures should be taken to prevent corruption in sub-registrar offices and told them to focus more on all the government offices where there was a possibility of corruption, along with the sub-registrar's office, tahsildar, MDO, RDO, and collector's offices.

He ordered the display of the toll-free number of ACB 14400 prominently in every government office and hospital. Asserting that corruption could be eradicated only through strong measures, the Chief Minister instructed the authorities to keep action taken reports of the calls attended through the toll-free number.

Further, he asked the officials to display the list of services available in the registration offices at the village secretariats along with the benefits of registration services to make people come forward to avail the services.

Officials informed that registrations are being done in secretariats of 51 villages so far, while arrangements were being made to extend these services to another 650 villages soon and moving ahead to start them in all 2,000 village /ward secretariats by October 2, 2022.

As officials stated that the permissions for the red sanders auction would be obtained from the Centre soon, the Chief Minister cautioned them to act carefully in securing the stock currently under the control of the forest department and told them to verify the stock every month and update the details.

Reviewing excise, he directed the officials to prevent the manufacturing and supply of illicit liquor across the state. He said that women police played a vital role in curbing illegal liquor in villages and asked the authorities to frame an SOP (standard operating procedures) based on the women police in village secretariats.

The Chief Minister also reviewed the auction of AgriGold assets and directed the authorities to resolve the disputes at the earliest possible. As promised, the government had paid Rs 905.57 crore to AgriGold victims.

Ministers K Narayanaswamy, Peddireddi Ramachandra Reddy, Dharmana Prasada Rao, Audimulapu Suresh, chief secretary Sameer Sharma, forest, environment special CS Nirab Kumar Prasad, municipal administration special CS Y Srilakshmi, revenue department special CS Rajat Bhargava, chief commissioner, land administration G Sai Prasada Rao, transport principal secretary MT Krishnababu, panchayat raj and rural development principal secretary Gopal Krishna Dwivedi, home department principal secretary Harish Kumar, APGenco MD B Sridhar, finance secretary N Gulzar, APCRDA commissioner Vivek Yadav and other officials were present.