The high-level Finance Ministry committee on tackling the menace of black money, has been given three more months to come up with its report on ways to tackle the menace and recover money illegally stashed abroad.

The report is not finalised yet and the committee has been given another three months to submit it, the Finance Secretary, Mr R.S. Gujral, said.

Meanwhile, the committee Chairman, Mr M.C. Joshi, has rued the lukewarm response from India Inc and the public at large to its appeal for suggestions, despite the hue and cry created by the issue in the political arena.

“We have not received a great response from the public,” Mr Joshi, who is also the CBDT Chairman, told a press conference soon after the inaugural of the 4{+t}{+h} international tax dialogue (ITD) with the theme ‘Tax and Inequality' here today.

The committee is understood to have got about 3,300 responses from public through e-mail, suggesting ways to curb the generation of black money.

The black money committee will submit its report before the end of the current fiscal, he said. Trade bodies and industry associations have been somewhat indifferent in their response to this committee, which had invited suggestions from public and all stakeholders.

Faced with criticism that little was being done to bring back the unaccounted wealth stashed abroad by Indians, the Government had in May set up a committee to go into the issue of black money.

This committee, which is headed by the CBDT Chairman, was mandated to go into all aspects of black money and suggest measures to stop its generation. It will examine ways to strengthen laws to curb the generation of black money in the country, its illegal transfer abroad and its recovery.

>krsrivats@thehindu.co.in

Related Topics
comment COMMENT NOW