UP CM Yogi Adityanath Authorises Tax Officials To Use Helicopters For Field Visits To Drive Up Tax Collection

In a move to drive up the tax collection in the state, Uttar Pradesh (UP) Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has authorised officials of the rank of additional chief secretary to take state-owned helicopters to visit commissionerates for field visits, reports Times of India.

The CM also asked the tax officials to carry out regular field visits during a tax collection review meeting held in Lucknow on Wednesday (1 January).

As per the TOI report, he asked the principal secretary, excise, principal secretary, stamp and registration, and principal secretary, power, to visit the 8 divisions in the state.

“We have been told to visit two divisions a day. Each division should be reviewed separately. To ensure we are able to complete work on time, the CM has told us to use state helicopters,” the report quoted a senior official.

UP, a largely consumer state, has about 14 lakh registered users and the move is aimed at increasing this number to 50 lakh. In a recently released report for December GST collections, the figures were about 11 per cent higher than in the same period in 2018.

CM Adityanath also said that weekly targets should be set for district officials which would be monitored at headquarters level.