FM wants tax officials to be like honey bees and meet targets without coercive methods

FINANCE minister Pranab Mukherjee said he wanted tax officials to be like honey bees who don’t harm flowers, as he talked about a future tax system which generates revenues on a sustained basis without use of coercive tax collection methods at the end of each year to meet targets. He said it while presenting the General Budget in Lok Sabha on Monday. He said he wanted tax collectors to “be like honey bees collecting nectar from the flowers without disturbing them, but spreading their pollen so that all flowers can thrive and bear fruit.” The tax officials have now been directed to work on SARAL-II forms for early introduction. UIDAI marks the beginning of private sector entry into government Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) marks the beginning of an era where the top private sector talent in India steps forward to take the responsibility for implementing projects of vital national importance, said finance minister Pranab Mukherjee while presenting the general Budget. He also added that the project is close to his heart. The project which will be spearheaded by former Infosys co-chairman Nandan Nilekani, will roll out first set of unique identity numbers in 12 to 18 months. The Budget made a provision of Rs 120 crore for the project where a number of civil servants have been lobbying to get involved. Action & Appointment A) Raghu Menon, a 1974 batch IAS of Nagaland cadre, has been appointed as secretary, ministry of Information and Broadcasting in the vacancy of Ms Sushma Singh, a 1972 batch IAS of Jharkhand cadre who retired recently. Jawahar Sircar, a 1975 batch West Bengal cadre IAS who is secretary, ministry of culture, will relinquish the additional charge of the post of secretary, I&B. B) Central deputation tenure of Umesh Kumar, IPS (AM, 1984), IG, CISF has been extended for one year beyond June 11, 2009 or until further orders.