Taxes not so taxing here

BANGALORE: Gayatri Vihar is as busy as a beehive. People walk in with Form 16 in hands and beclouded faces. Senior citizens inch up to the expansive indoors wondering how long they will have to spend there.Children halfheartedly accompany their parents on a day they could be at the park.And inside, what greets them takes the yolk off their taxed shoulders. The beclouded man gets help from the help desk. The senior citizen finds the senior citizen’s counter more than helpful, and kids happily make their way to the play area.At the more than 100 special counters that the income tax department have set up at Gayatri Vihar, Palace Grounds, people can file their returns, update their pan card, apply for a pan card and even file the returns for their friends. As the last date for filing the returns (July 31) is not that far away, people have started bee lining to the venue. “We get 10,000 to 15,000 people every day. On Saturday close to 20,000 people came,” says Dr P V Pradeep Kumar, joint commissioner of income tax, Karnataka.The special counters have ATM machines, swipe machines and bank counters.Tax Return Preparers (TRP) are also present to assist people with their returns. The pan service counters help people with queries related to their pan card, apply for a new pan car or change the information on their card. Bulk return counters facilitate bulk filing of returns. There are also special counters for senior citizens and people with physical disabilities.“This is the third time we are holding it in such a big venue. We felt it was necessary to do it. Earlier we used to hold it in our office premises and a couple of other places. But that saw problems of many kinds — parking, traffic and so on. A place like this solves all the issues,” notes Kumar.According to Kumar, with increased e-filing of returns, paper transaction will see an end, but that will take a long time. “We hope to get three lakh people this year,” he says. The income tax department have made special arrangements with the BMTC and have struck a deal for ‘request stops’ outside the venue. “We understand that people have to have proper transportation facilities. They just need to flag down the buses and they will stop,” notes Kumar. Also a platoon of police personnel have been deployed at the venue apart from extra traffic policemen to man the road. Sagar Hospital has also set up a first aid unit and a free BP and diabetes testing centre here. A food court and a play area for children have also been provided. The counters will be open till July 31, from 9.30 am to 5 pm.