Haryana excise and taxation minister, Kiran Chaudhery has cautioned that stern action would be taken against those officials who are found involved in any corrupt practices.

She said that the department is being computerized which would completely eliminate any incidents of theft of tax. Chaudhery was addressing a programme organized by Excise and Taxation Inspectors Association, Haryana at Bhiwani on Monday.

She said that the state has registered additional revenue of 13 per cent due to the hard working and persistent efforts by the officers. However, she directed to further increase this revenue. She said that the demand to increase the grade of inspector, merge the post of assistant excise and taxation officer (AETO) and grant of class-I status to deputy excise and taxation commissioner (DETC) would soon be taken up. It was utmost important to boost the morale of the officers and give them their due right so that they work even more diligently, she added.

Lauding the role of officers of taxation department, Chaudhery urged the officers to discharge their duties with honesty and dedication. She said that this would not only increase the revenue but would also give them a feeling of self satisfaction. It was due to the transparent policy of the state government that the record increase in revenue has been registered, she added.

While describing inspector as the backbone of the department, the minister said that the revenue collected by them was used on various development projects. She said that besides increasing the revenue, the officers should also increase the scope of the department. Speaking on the occasion, excise and taxation commissioner Anil Malik informed that it is for the first time that under the excise policy, the state has collected revenue of Rs 550 crore as license fee.