After the month of Rain, Religion & Rest, the taxing times
are here again! The tax professionals have to now brace themselves for the
testing period of September and October. Though the due dates and the
deadlines are known very much before hand, it is the same story every year –
the last minute work pressure and mental tension.
Perhaps, this is the only way we, the professionals, have
learnt to work and function. Those who can do otherwise are truly blessed. In
fact, quite a few of the professionals observe that they can perform better
only when they work under pressure!
Be that it may, the disturbing trend that we are now
witnessing is the progressive increase in the incidents of adverse effects of
such stressful professional life on the health of the professionals, many of
them being very young. It is high time that education to the members is not
confined to the subjects of tax or audits but also on the aspects concerning
mental and physical well-being of the professionals. This is because the
adverse effects of these aspects no longer remain confined to only personal
life of a member nor does the professional life remain immune from these
aspects. They tend to very much affect the professional life. I think it has
now become inevitable for each of us to educate ourselves also on these vital,
but grossly ignored and undermined, aspects of our professional life. The
Chamber has already started Self Awareness Series (SAS) under the auspice of
Membership & Public Relation Committee, under which well-known personalities
have been delivering interesting and, indeed, illuminating, talks on the
subjects ranging from philosophy to health to time management, etc. The
participants have very much appreciated this Series. We intend to continue
this Series for the benefit of the members.
Coming back to the taxing time ahead, to add to the woes of
the professionals who are gearing up to face this period, two important
developments, which have direct impact on finalisation of audit under the Act
as well as on filing of various returns under the Act, have taken place. New
Tax Audit Form contains many far reaching changes. New forms, including
concerning Fringe Benefit Tax, prescribed for filing returns of income also
contain many disturbing contents. Voices of protest, discontent, fear, anger,
and of helplessness, are being hard loud and clear. The Chamber, along with
other sister organisations, will be making suitable representations on some of
the issues arising out these new forms. It is really high time to have a
relook at this entire exercise of formulating rules and various forms under
the Act, including the timing and the methodology of the same. Let there be
transparency in the entire process, so as to eliminate, or at least reduce,
such totally avoidable exercise of protests and post amendment
representations, which, in this context, are nothing but a sheer national
waste of time and energy.
In the meanwhile, to gear up the members to meet these new
challenges, the Chamber has organized a Full Day Seminar on “Fringe Benefit
Tax – Legal & Audit Aspects” on 9-9-2006. This Seminar is organised jointly
with BCAS. The response has been so overwhelming that we had to close the
enrolment. On 21-9-2006, the Chamber has organized a Half Day Seminar on Tax
Audit, with eminent faculty. In fact, due to the importance of this topic and
the serious implications arising out of the new forms for Tax Audit, on
demand, we had to actually prepone this Seminar, which was originally
scheduled on 6-10-2006. Yet another programme that is scheduled in this regard
is Lecture on “New income tax returns and E-filing of returns”. This important
and useful practice oriented programme is scheduled on 9-10-2006.
Details of these programmes are given in the "The Chamber
News" of this issue as well as in the CITC News.
I hope these programmes will prove to be of immense
benefits to the members.
So, lets get on to the work, for now!
Yours truly,
VIPUL B. JOSHI
President
