In respect of curbing the Black Money , following
report appeared in Hindustan Times ( July 15, 2016 ) :
SIT on black money has recommended :
* Banning of
Cash transactions of over Rs 3 lakh
* Individuals
restricted from holding more than Rs 15 lakh in cash
* Enactment of
an Act to declare such transactions illegal / punishable under law
Revenue Secretary , Shri Hasmukh Adhia added :
* Legislative changes
required for both suggestions to be implemented
* Limiting cash
transactions would strengthen archaic laws and improve enforcement action
* SIT
recommendation is to limit cash movement
* We are waiting
for public comments before we take a view on implementing these suggestions
* SIT had taken
into account big cash recoveries made by law enforcement agencies from time to
time and
concluded that the cash transaction limit
would succeed if there was a similar cap on Cash holdings
Congratulations on a good beginning !
I am sure , citizens will have some questions about
these proposals, such as :
* Will the
Cash-Holding limit also apply to Companies ( partnership / private ltd / public
ltd ) ?
Especially
those Companies which pay out monthly salaries in cash to employees on 7th of
each month ?
* Will this
limit also apply to NGOs / Political Parties / Charitable Trusts / Hospitals /
Govt Agencies etc ?
In such cases
, who ( which person - CEO / CFO / MD / Trustee / Party President / Secretary )
is responsible ?
* Will separate
limits be applied to ( A ) Cash in bank lockers
, and ( B ) Cash in home lockers ?
* What powers
will the Income Tax Authorities have to raid / inspect , " suspected " lockers , especially
the
bank lockers
? Would they need to obtain a prior warrant ? from which Authority ? Can these
lockers be opened
even in the
absence of the concerned owner ?
* What amount of
punishments are envisaged for those found guilty of paying and receiving ?
* Will
enforcement of these proposal require an army of 1 MILLION inspectors , considering
that there are over 50
million
individual tax payers , apart from 40 million MSME establishments in the
country ?
MY SUGGESTION :
# Whereas this
is definitely a step in the right direction , it must be thought through very
thoroughly so that
ordinary /
innocent citizens are not harassed on mere " Suspicion " of holding
more than Rs 15 lakh in cash .
# The raiding / inspecting agency MUST have
some IRREFUTABLE PROOF that a particular cabinet / locker / safe ,
contains ( beyond
an iota of doubt ) , an accumulation of currency notes exceeding Rs 15 lakh ,
continuously
for a
period of 7 days in a row ( - and further proof that this ILLEGAL amount
consists of the SAME currency
notes and
not different combinations of currency notes , over that 7 day period )
# Any number of shops / establishments , which
accept payments of under Rs 3 lakhs in cash from dozens of
customers in
the course of a working day , may have , even Rs 20 lakhs in cash at the end of
the day !
It is a
normal practice for all shop owners to take the cash home at the end of the day
and deposit it in their
bank account
, the next morning
There must not be any harassment of such shop-owners
by the concerned Authorities
# The only way these proposals can be
implemented SMOOTHLY and in a FOOLPROOF way , is to implement my
following old
suggestion ( sent to Policy Makers , many times in past one year ) :
* Discontinue
paper-based currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000
* Introduce
plastic currency notes of Rs 500 / 1,000 which are embedded with RFID sensors
* Assign to each
such note, a IP V 6.0 address , linked to its unique note number
* Set up a
IT-enabled Technology Platform which will constantly monitor any accumulation
of Rs 500 / 1000
RFID
embedded notes in excess of Rs 15 Lakh within an area of ONE square meter
Not only this IT-enabled Technology Platform show up all
cabinets / lockers having such accumulations ( on the
GPS maps of IT Department's mobile app - BLACK-MAIL ) but it
will also provide irrefutable proof of violation
And , a frugal extension of this technology will even create a
dynamic CURRENCY MAP of entire country by tracking
the movement of each and every currency note ( Rs 500 / 1000 ) ,
throughout its life !
And the CURRENCY DENSITY of any State / City / Street !
No need for an army of inspectors , additional administrative
machinery , search-warrants , " Panch-Nama " !
No chance of frivolous litigations on part of the so-called
" Aggrieved " !
I do hope , our policy makers will cease this opportunity of a
life time ( especially in view of forthcoming elections )
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
15 July 2016
www.hemenparekh.in / blogs
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