Resolution of CESA Mumbai (AIACEGEO)

CESA Mumbai in its Managing Committee meeting held on 11.01.2013 considered at length among others the burning issue related to two Service Tax Commissionerates in Mumbai. Service Tax was introduced in 1994 with four Services, the ST branch started working from the 6^th floor of the Mumbai-I Commissionerate at Churchgate building. Subsequently, due to increase in the number of services covered, it started functioning from all the existing Central Excise Commissionerate in both the Zones of Mumbai. The first full-fledged Service Tax Commissionerate came into existence in Mumbai in September, 2004 and it continued to function from the Churchgate office building.

In January, 2005 the sanctioned strength of Superintendents in M & P was reduced from 90 to 64 and 26 Superintendents were diverted and posted in Service Tax Commissionerate. Thereafter, gradually the Administration diverted the officers and staff from Central Excise Commissionerates of Mumbai Zone – I, to cater the increased work load of Service Tax. In September, 2010, Mumbai – IV Central Excise Commissionerate was abolished and in its place Service Tax – II Commissionerate was formed. The existing 6 divisions of Service Tax Commissionerate was bifurcated and both Commissionerates were given three divisions each.

With phenomenal increase in the assessee base, the workload of Service Tax has increased manifold. So is the collection of revenue. Side by side, disputes and litigations have also increased. However, in spite of huge work load and equally enormous amount of revenue, till date the Administration has adopted adhocism in every sphere of work relating to the functioning of the Service Tax Commissionerates in Mumbai. At the end of every financial year i.e. from December to March all the senior functionaries of the department from Delhi rush to Mumbai to mobilize revenue collection but when it comes to basic infrastructure they have miserably failed to pay any attention or to show any concern about the condition in which the officers of Service Tax are working. In any of the Chief Commissioners Conference this burning issue was never part of the agenda; nor considered in any other high level meetings. The adhoc mode of functioning continues unabated despite several representations submitted in the past to all the concerned authorities.

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Due to this apathy, several of our Colleagues and Officers have suffered irreparably damage to their health and some of them have even lost their lives. Condolences were offered to the families of fallen colleagues and empty assurances were given time and again to reduce work load and to improve working conditions and basic infrastructure. But the Administration has failed repeatedly and we have now reached the nadir of our patience. The Administration has diverted 30% of the sanctioned strength of Superintendents from Central Excise Commissionerates of Mumbai Zone-I, i.e. Mumbai – I, Thane – I, Thane – II and Mumbai – V and posted them in Service Tax Commissionerates. Such diversion of officers from Central Excise Commissionerate to Service Tax is causing serious stress to the Central Excise Officers since they are forced to take additional charge and perform the day to day work and statutory work in time. Resultantly, the audit of the Central Excise formations, scrutiny, recovery and other time bound work are piling up and cannot be attended to in time. To increase the suffering further, now Audit work of HQs has been transferred to Ranges in Zone I Commissionerates.

On Service Tax side, six divisions, 32 Audit groups and 31 Anti-evasion groups, and numerous cells in addition to the regular sections are functioning under the two Commissioners. Each division is having more than 40,000 service tax assessees, and the skeletal staff posted there is required to manage the entire show. It is a matter of shame that there are no basic facilities to handle a total registered assesses of more than 2.5 lakhs paying revenue of more than Rs. 29000 thousand crores upto December, 2012. Less said the better about the efficiency, speed and the quality of ACES system and infrastructure related to it. Apparently, functioning of the ACES system is of least concern to the Administration and has become non-operational resulting in statistics relating to number of Service Tax assessees / returns filed / SCNs issued etc. are not being properly/ correctly reflected in the system.

The work load of every Superintendent whether posted in the Division, Audit, Anti-Evasion or elsewhere is so heavy that it is humanly impossible to do justice to the mountain of issues and files. For almost two decades the number of service providers and the service tax regulations have been amended and expanded tremendously, but its enforcement and Administration in Mumbai is still being done on adhoc mode and managing the Administration as and where basis. We are ashamed of the utter callousness of the Administration in dealing with the life and death situation prevailing now. The Administration has stooped to such a low level that they expect the diverted Central Excise Superintendents and officers even to carry their old furniture and computers/personal laptops to their newly posted Service Tax Commissionerate. There can be no two opinions about the

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total failure of the Administration in providing even the most basic infrastructure for effective functioning to its workforce, like office space, chair, table, computer, Officers, Staff etc. Forget about minimum courtesy to provide even chair to Assessees who are visiting our offices.

Further, the utter lack of vision of the Administration is compelling the officers to attend office on Saturdays and holidays. The Administration is well aware that in the days of computer, mobile and email the officers are always connected and are working beyond office hours and even from home, trying their best to do justice to the overload of work but the Administration failed to provide network/LAN facilities. These very officers are already tired of working beyond working hours in an office bereft of basic infrastructure. The Audit and Anti-evasion groups/officers are asked to do their field duties without providing any vehicles or any travelling allowances. Further, the Hqrs of both the Commissionerates are functioning from Churchgate while their Anti-evasion and Audit groups and other sections are functioning from Worli, Dharavi and old Customs house. These officers are also called regularly from their respective office to Hqrs. and no transport facilities or traveling allowance / remuneration is given to them, apart from wastage of office hours. The cost and stress of additional travel in Mumbai, coupled with the unacceptable behavior of some of the senior officers, is adding to the mental stress of the officers even to render their best.

Thus, to conclude:

• Several representations from Associations submitted to the Administration on basic infrastructure, work load and working conditions have failed to evoke even muted response;
• the Administration has always been acting in an adhoc and casual manner;
• the Senior officers who are duty bound to ensure healthy working conditions to their subordinates have repeatedly failed in their basic duty of protecting and taking care of their sub-ordinates;
• due to lack of vision of Administrative powers that for almost two decades, the continued insensitivity and inaction, has taken a serious toll on the Superintendents and Inspectors in particular and staff in general;
• the Administration has completely failed to foresee the magnitude of the assessee increasing in every passing day and the issues and problems that are arising thereon, and has completely failed to chalk-out an action plan and implement a healthy assessee-officer ratio; and proper mechanism for effective control and mop up revenue collections and also to check defaulters

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In the light of above,

CESA Mumbai UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVES -: THAT

 The existing Service Tax Commissionerates and Divisions in Mumbai be further bifurcated to form more new Commissionerates and Divisions, based on number of registered Service Tax Assessees;

• Sanctioned Strength of Officers and Staff at all levels be fixed in direct proportion to the number of registered assessees;

 Office premises be acquired to meet the requirements of all officers and staff.

 work load of Superintendent to be quantified, proper duty list to be allocated and norms be fixed for each item of work with adequate support and sub-ordinate staff;

 the officers, especially from Audit, Anti-evasion and field staff on survey work, shall be provided with vehicle for carrying out the field work or the reimbursement of the traveling expenses;

 no Superintendent be forced to interact or communicate under their signature with outside agency or banking institutions like for freezing of accounts etc.;

 the role of the Superintendent is supervisory and it should be clearly adhered to;

 No officer should be called to office on Saturdays and holidays unless there is emergency situation; and no one should be asked to work beyond prescribed office hours;

• No leave of any kind should be denied to any officer;
• The Senior Officers should not misbehave, ill-treat or use filthy language to the subordinate Officers. Such misbehavior, ill-treatment does not improve the efficiency but demoralize the officers. Therefore use of abusive/filthy language will not be tolerated;
• staff on loan basis be surrendered to Central Excise Commissionerates and the strength of Marine & preventive be reviewed; and
• If infrastructure situation does not improve, then we will be constrained to launch agitation and register our protest, by working in the open area of the office premises on 22nd February 2013.

V.A. KOLHATKAR                                                                                  A.K. SASMAL

President                                                                                              General Secretary

Mumbai : 11.01.2013.