The Biz Reporter
Srinagar: The Kashmir Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI) today participated in the Familiarisation Programme on the Income Tax Act, 2025 organized by the Income Tax Department at Srinagar.
The programme was attended by Dr. G. S. Phani Kishore, IRS, Chief Commissioner of Income Tax (CCIT), Amritsar Region, as the Chief Guest, and Smt. Monika Dhami, IRS, Principal Commissioner of Income Tax (PCIT), J&K, along with senior officers of the Department, tax professionals and representatives of trade and industry.
The KCCI delegation was led by its President, Javid Ahmad Tenga, and included Vice President Farooq Amin, Secretary General Faiz Ahmad Bakshi, and Executive Committee Members Ashiq Hussain Shangloo and Bashir Ahmad Naik.
During the interactive session, KCCI welcomed the Department’s initiative to engage stakeholders on the proposed Income Tax Act, 2025 and emphasised the importance of continuous dialogue between the tax administration and the business community.
The Chamber noted that while the Income Tax Department has undertaken significant reforms through digitisation and faceless proceedings, taxpayers in Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh continue to face unique challenges arising from geographical, climatic and administrative constraints.
On the occasion, KCCI submitted a detailed document highlighting the concerns of taxpayers in the region. The document drew attention to difficulties faced by taxpayers in accessing Income Tax services, particularly in remote districts, lack of awareness regarding compliance procedures, delays in grievance redressal, challenges associated with faceless proceedings, refund processing issues, limited availability of professional tax support, language and communication barriers, and disruptions caused by severe weather conditions and road closures.
The Chamber also placed before the Department several recommendations aimed at improving taxpayer services. These included the establishment of Income Tax Facilitation Centres in districts such as Kupwara, Ganderbal, Bandipora, Leh and Kargil regular taxpayer awareness and outreach programmes, simplification of departmental communications, strengthening of grievance redressal mechanisms and capacity-building initiatives for taxpayers and professionals.
A major issue highlighted by KCCI was the jurisdictional arrangement of the South Kashmir districts of Anantnag, Kulgam, Pulwama and Shopian, which presently fall under the jurisdiction of the Income Tax Office, Udhampur following the restructuring of Faceless and Jurisdictional Assessing Officer charges in 2020. The Chamber pointed out that this arrangement causes significant hardship to taxpayers, particularly during periods when National Highway-44 remains disrupted due to snowfall, landslides and adverse weather conditions. KCCI requested that the jurisdiction of these districts be shifted to Anantnag through redesignation of the existing Verification Unit as a regular Income Tax Office.
The Chamber further sought the creation of an Office of the Income Tax Officer (Exemptions) at Srinagar to cater to the growing number of charitable, educational and non-profit institutions in the region. It also requested regular camp sittings of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Amritsar Bench, at Srinagar to facilitate easier access to appellate remedies and reduce litigation costs.
All the issues and recommendations contained in the memorandum were discussed during the session.
Dr. G. S. Phani Kishore assured the KCCI that the Department remains committed to improving taxpayer services and that the concerns raised by stakeholders would receive due consideration. Smt. Monika Dhami informed the gathering that awareness and outreach programmes would be conducted in North Kashmir, including Baramulla, Sopore and Kupwara, to improve taxpayer awareness and facilitate compliance.
KCCI appreciated the positive response from the Department and expressed hope that the issues raised would be addressed in a constructive manner to further strengthen taxpayer services and ease of compliance in Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.
