Indian Revenue Service
| Service Overview | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abbreviation | I.R.S. | |||||||||||||
| Formed | 1963 | |||||||||||||
| Country |  India
| |||||||||||||
| Training Ground | National Academy of Customs & Excise, Faridabad National Academy of Direct Taxes, Nagpur | |||||||||||||
| Controlling Authority | Ministry of Finance (Department of Revenue) | |||||||||||||
| Legal personality | Governmental: Government service/Enforcement(financial) | |||||||||||||
| General nature | Taxation Revenue Policy Formulation and Implementation Department of Revenue Administration Advisors to Ministers Enforcement of Tax Rules | |||||||||||||
| Preceding service | ||||||||||||||
| Cadre Size | 4000(combined) (2010) | |||||||||||||
| Service Chief | ||||||||||||||
| Chairman, CBEC Chairman, CBDT |
S.D. Majumdar Sudhir Chandra | |||||||||||||
| Head of the Civil Services | ||||||||||||||
| Cabinet Secretary Current: K M Chandrasekhar | ||||||||||||||
The Indian Revenue Service (IRS) is one of the Premier Group A Civil Services of India. Indian Revenue Service comprises of two branches (Customs & Central Excise) and (Income Tax) controlled by two separate Statutory Bodies, Central Board of Excise & Customs (CBEC) & Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT). Probationary IRS Officers are offered a choice between Customs & Excise or Income Tax, to which they belong to permanently. IRS officers are concerned with the collection, administration and policy formation of Direct (Income, Corporate, Wealth, FBT etc.) and Indirect (Central Excise, Service Tax and Customs Duty). These officers are the tax administrators of India. They are either under the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) or the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) in the Department of Revenue under the Ministry of Finance, Government of India.
Selection
Selection is through the Civil Services Examination conducted by Union Public Service Commission through a three-stage combined selection process called the Civil Services Examination. The first stage, the Civil Services Examination(Preliminary) is composed of two objective exams: one of General studies and one of a subject of the candidate's choice amongst a given list of subjects.
The candidates can choose to be examined in about forty fields, from Civil Engineering and Medicine to Chinese Literature and Accountancy. This is purely an eliminatory stage and plays no part in the final rankings. About 5000-6000 of the applicants are selected for the next stage called the Civil Services Examination(Mains). The second stage is more exhaustive. It has nine papers of which two are of qualification in nature. Candidates must choose two optional subjects of their choice, as compared to one in the Preliminary stage. There are two papers of General Studies, Optional 1 and Optional 2 and one Essay paper. Around 1200-1400 aspirants clear Mains and sit for the third stage, the Civil Services Examination(Interview) . Every candidate is asked to choose their preference of services before the interview. The entire selection process lasts fifteen to thirty two months. Repeated attempts are allowed (maximum of 4 times for general category,7 times for OBC and no limits for SC & ST).
Training
IRS Officer Trainees (OTs, as they are fondly referred to) undergo a 3 month foundational training officers from Central Services (Group A) at LBSNAA,Mussoorie followed by a 15 month rigorous professional training in National Academy of Customs Excise and Narcotics[1] Faridabad [2] for the officers of Customs and Excise or National Academy of Direct Taxes, Nagpur [3] for officers of Income Tax, where they are intensively trained in principles, concepts and advances in Management, Taxation. Public Policy and Law in addition to rigorous physical defense and firearms training.
Postings
Starting with the prestigious post of Assistant Commissioner, IRS officers rise up to Chief Commissioner level/Director General of Incometax with the senior most ones reaching the post of Member/Chairperson - CBDT / CBEC / CESTAT / ITAT / Settlement Commissions.
The officers of the Department of Revenue looks after matters relating to all administration work pertaining to the Department, coordination between the two boards (CBEC and CBDT), the administration of the Indian Stamp Act 1899 (to the extent falling within the jurisdiction of the Union), the Central Sales Tax Act 1956, the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act 1985 (NDPSA), the Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators (Forfeiture of Property) Act 1976 (SAFEM (FOP) A), the Foreign Exchange Management Act 1999 (FEMA), Prevention of Money- Laundering Act, 2002 and the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974 (COFEPOSA), and matters relating to the following attached offices of the Department:
b) Central Economic Intelligence Bureau (CEIB)
c) Directorate of Revenue Intelligence
d) Competent Authorities appointed under SAFEM (FOP) A and NDPSA
e)Central Bureau of Investigation
f)Central Bureau of Narcotics
g) Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal * CESTAT
h) Appellate Tribunal for Forfeited Property (ATFP)
i) Customs and Central Excise Settlement Commission (CCESC)
j) Income Tax Settlement Commission (ITSC)
k) Authority for Advance Rulings (AAR) for Customs and Central Excise
l) Authority for Advance Rulings (AAR) for Income Tax
m) National Committee for Promotion of Social and Economic Welfare (NCPSEW)
n) Financial Intelligence Unit, India (FIU-IND)
o) Settlement Commission (Income Tax/Wealth Tax)
p) Income Tax Ombudsman
They are also deputed to the Vigilance Department, CBI, Securities & Exchange Board of India, Narcotics Control Bureau apart from heading various cells in the Ministry of Finance and other ministries in the Indian Government.
The administrative acumen of the service has now started getting recognition of late.
One of the previous Chief Election Commissioners, T.S.Krishna Murthy was the first ever IRS officer to become a Secretary to the Govt of India.
One of the present members of Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is also a member of IRS.
Designations & Career Progression
The time scale of the officers of the Indian Revenue Service:
| Position / Pay Grade in the Government of India | Level and Rank | Order of Precedence (As per Presidential order) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Junior Time Scale | Entry-level (Probationer) / Assistant Commissioner | -- |
| 2 | Senior Time Scale | Deputy Commissioner (Equivalent to) Under Secretary to Government of India | -- |
| 3 | Junior Administrative Grade | Joint Commissioner / Joint director (Equivalent to) Deputy Secretary to Government of India | -- |
| 4 | Selection Grade | Additional Commissioner (Equivalent to) Director to Government of India | -- |
| 5 | Senior Administrative Grade | Commissioner (Equivalent to) Joint Secretary to Government of India | 26 |
| 6 | Higher Administrative Grade | Chief Commissioner (Equivalent to) Additional Secretary to Government of India | 25 |
| 7 | Apex Scale / HAG+ | Chairman / Board & Tribunal Members - Ex Officio Special Secretary to Government of India (The highest rank in the Boards) |
23 |
Career prospects
Though the pay is much lower than in private sector, given the high talent and competence of the officers, the unparalleled power, perks, and prestige make up for it. Officers also feel an added sense of satisfaction that comes from directly contributing to the development of the country, revenue being the source of all developmental works of a government. Their contribution can be judged from the fact that with a total strength of around 4000 officers (in direct taxes) and an added 2500 (in indirect taxes), the IRS are responsible for collection of 85% of Government of India's revenues (taxes)(which is around Rs. 7000 billion - being around 10.5% of GDP. Presently only 3% of Indian population comes in the tax bracket. Similarly the Service Tax has only started picking up of late due to very few services in the tax net. With the economy booming, the IRS is bound to play an increasingly important role in the affairs of the state. As the country liberalizes further, the economic power will shift into private hands with the public-private participation being the keyword. Hence the IRS officers will be at the interaction point between the private industry and the government. This is being recognized in one of the reports of The Economic Times which foresees a high demand for IRS officers in the private sector considering their wide range of experience in manning various fiscal and monetary policy centers as well as field formations.
Candidates prefer the IRS above other premier services due to least political interference, stable tenures, and postings to metropolitan cities.
Challenges
As with other government service, there are many allegations of corruption, including CBI cracks down in 2009.[1][2] In recent times a senior IRS officer had been convicted by the TADA court, Mumbai for his role in 1993 Mumbai Blasts.
The introduction of automated interfaces using electronic technologies have the potential of reducing such shortcomings in the system.
An IRS officer is entrusted with the task of completing the assessment of the Tax Returns (as in Income Tax, Central Excise and Service Tax) or Border Control in relation to Import and Export of goods (as in Customs). It requires prolonged verifications and inquiries and investigations.
An IRS officer gets limited staff to assist him in this task. The reduction of manpower in the field in recent years has had a bearing on this. However promotion prospects and deputation posts are the major demoralizing factors among the officers as these have been monopolized by the IAS officers who have captured several crucial posts in the Department of Revenue for itself due to being in the decision making seat for other services as well as itself.
The post of Revenue Secretary (Administrative Head of Department of Revenue) is one of the most influential in the Indian Government and is a highly coveted post within the IAS lobby hence is always occupied by an IAS officer, even though he/she has negligible experience & knowledge of the Revenue Department. Both the services are adapting to the changes in India's economic framework in last fifteen years in the form of liberalization and globalization.
See also
References
- ^ Corruption in Income-Tax: beaten by Babudom Mint, 30 April 2007.
- ^ CBI cracks down on India's corrupt babudom The Times of India, 12 June 2009.