Finance Minister Gyanendra Bahadur Karki has said that Rs 612 billion revenue has been collected in the fiscal year 2016/17.

In today's meeting of Finance Committee under the Legislature-Parliament, Minister Karki said it was 108 per cent more than the target. The government had collected Rs 565 billion revenue last fiscal year.

He said, "Zero tolerance policy has been adopted against revenue leakage and irregularities. It will be strictly brought into practice. Emphasis has been given on Automated Custom Tax System to control irregularities in the revenue and tax system."

The Finance Minister said customs at point of origin and the details of the monitoring and transaction of such transaction from the point of production itself would be brought into the computerized system for checking the irregularities and incongruities seen in the revenue system.

The ministry is working with priority for keeping a close watch on tax and laws, the Finance Minister said.

He added that the performance and character of the employees working in the tax administration would be monitored for checking tax evasion, and that preparations were on for formulating and implementing a code of conduct for those working in the customs, revenue and taxation system.

Finance Minister Karki also shared the information that the work of installing IP cameras was moving ahead rapidly at 13 places of the country for making the revenue collection effective.

He stated that a local-type tax dispute settlement committee has been proposed in the proposed Revenue Board Act for systematizing the tasks of constituting commissions as the Tax Settlement Commission.

Revenue Secretary at the Finance Ministry Sishir Dhungana said although it was not in itself bad practice to form the tax settlement commission, the issue of working style and transparency was important. He added that such tax settlement commissions are formed in one or the other form in other countries throughout the world as well.

In the meeting, the committee members had inquired the Finance Minister and the ministry officials regarding the steps taken by the Ministry regarding revenue collection and to stop corruption and irregularities seen in the tax administration. RSS