The Hindu Business Line : Industry told to be more transparent in accounting

THE Government has lashed out at trade and industry for adopting faulty accounting practices and indulging in misdeclarations to hoodwink the tax authorities.

"It's my belief that industry and trade has to come forward with transparent, above board and recognised accounting practices if they are keen to move into a further lower excise and customs duty rate regime. You will have to earn the confidence of the authorities and ensure that there is little scope for misdeclarations," the Chairman of the Central Board of Excise and Customs, Mr M.K. Zutshi, said at a post-Budget interaction organised by PHDCCI here.

Citing the case of misdeclarations in edible oil industry, Mr Zutshi said that the introduction of tariff values on edible oil was industry's own making. "People are critical of the tariff value regime. It was traders and industry who brought it on themselves after all the shameful statements that one had to hear from the Malaysian Ministers," he said.

The CBEC Chairman said that the indirect taxes-GDP ratio of India at 5.6 per cent is among the lowest in the world. "We need your co-operation for higher tax collections as much as you need ours for duty changes. The whole objective behind the duty rationalisation in the Budget has been to kick-start the economy and generate demand," he said.

On the demands of industry that Cenvat credit in respect of duty paid on light diesel oil (LDO) should be restored, Mr Zutshi said that the removal of Cenvat credit on duty paid on LDO was an anti-evasion measure. "The measure has been brought about on account of large-scale adulteration. The amount of HSD, which is moving around in the name of LDO, is no joke. It was the Petroleum Ministry which sought the removal of Cenvat credit," he said.

He also clarified that call centres are particularly exempt from the ambit of the eight per cent service tax that are sought to be imposed on certain business promotion and support services, including customer care services.

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