In the modern world, administration of any revenue law has become a technical and, more often than not, a contentious issue. Revenue management is the key to economic stability and development. In the present day world, IT Tools have become crucial for efficient revenue management. The Finance (Commercial Taxes) Department, Govt of Bihar, has foreseen the role IT can play in streamlining fiscal management and imparting impetus to resource mobilization and has, accordingly, embarked on a project to fully computerize its activities.

?| Finance (Commercial Taxes) Department The Finance (Commercial Taxes) Department is the most significant revenue-earning wing of the Government of Bihar. It is the largest revenue earner for the Govt. of Bihar as it contributes more than 70% of total tax collection in the State. Keeping track of the kind of activities yielding revenue for the department becomes difficult and time consuming when carried out manually and it is here that an effective utilization of Information Technology can prove useful.

?| TACKIS - Introduction & Scope The computerization of Commercial Taxes envisages micro and macro level automation and trend analysis. At micro level, the scope of the software solution is to administer Commercial Taxes at circle level. At macro level the scope is to provide knowledge management system to monitor the distribution network of companies and dealers in the state of Bihar at the HQ. TACKIS is designed for macro level analysis e.g., monitoring of Tax Behavior and management of Tax Compliance. It is fashioning the dream of Finance (Commercial Taxes) Department, Govt. of Bihar into reality.

?| Objectives • To monitor the Distribution Network of Companies. • To monitor the Tax Compliance of Dealers. • To estimate and widen the Tax Base of the Department. • To estimate fresh potential for Revenue. • To increase the revenue collection by tapping the latent potentials in the state economy. • To unearth incidences of tax evasion and plugging tax. • Realization of Arrears. • Improved and efficient Knowledge Management of revenue collection. • To establish a basis for implementation of Value Added Tax (VAT).

?| Challenges to meet • Collection of data regarding sales of Companies. • Analysis of approximate market size of these Companies and their relative market share in Bihar in the light of macro economic indicators. • Collecting data regarding purchases and sales of dealers and assessing their tax potential. • Ascertaining the realization of Additional Tax when the consumer goods are re-sold down the line. • Identifying and bringing new / left out dealers under sales taxation.

?| Sources of Data • Records of the Companies dispatching goods from outside the State. • Depots, Branch-Offices, C&F Agents and Consignee Agents of the Companies established inside the State. • Purchase and Sales carried out by the Dealers or the Distributors in the State. • Payments made and Returns submitted by the Dealers (Output of STAMINA, a macro level software developed by NIC Bihar State Unit, running at Commercial Taxes Circles in the State).

?| Analysis carried out by TACKIS • National level performance indicators of companies vs. their respective share of business in the State. • Distribution Network of the Companies within the State, e.g., Depots, Branch-Offices, C&F Agents and Consignee Agents, Dealers/Distributors. • Taxable as well as Tax-Paid sales of various Companies to their Dealers within the State. • Purchases and Sales of individual Dealers and Tax deposited by them. • Tax Compliance and Tax Behaviors of Dealers.

?| Status of Implementation TACKIS is being used effectively since last one year at Finance (Commercial Taxes) Department, Govt. of Bihar. It has not only helped in computerizing Distribution Network of all C&F Agents, which contributes more than 80% of the total Commercial Taxes Revenue, but also records the Dealer-wise Purchase, Sale, and Tax deposited figures.

?| Impact TACKIS has so far created additional revenue of more than Rs. 250 Crores, which would otherwise remained un-earthed. This has become a boon for a poor state like Bihar.

?| Future Application TACKIS has recorded a grand success in the State of Bihar. It can be easily configured and implemented in other States for turning Distribution Networks into fully tax compliant systems. Senior Officers from other States have seen the software and shown interest in implementing the same in their respective States.

In the words of Sh. Sudhir Kumar, IAS, Commissioner & Secretary… “TACKIS, an application software for effective monitoring of the distribution chain operating in Bihar and the tax implications, is the result of a concerted effort on the part of the NIC and the department … It is among the most wonderful applications of IT “

For further information, please email at sio@bih.nic.in