Over 1.5 Lakh Taxpayers Have Declared Income Above Rs 1 Crore

So far, more than 1.5 lakh individuals have declared their annual income to be above Rs 1 crore for the assessment year 2018-19, said Sushil Chandra, the chairman of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT). The number is 69 percent higher than the numbers in AY 2014-15, however, it should be noted that the number is still low for a fast-growing economy like India.

At a conference organized by Assocham, Chandra said, "the department is detecting under-declaration of income through an analysis of consumption patterns." He said that despite most of the people that reported over Rs 1 crore in income being non-salaried, a large number of firms were not reporting above the threshold. The number was not adding up considering the expenditure patterns reported in the country.

"We see that GDP is growing, consumption is growing, all five star hotels are full but the number of persons filing income of more than Rs 1 crore, it is really pathetic," he said adding that it was up to the taxpayers now, considering that the department has simplified the tax return filing system.

He further said that between April 2018 and January 2019, 6.31 crore tax returns have been filed, a 37 percent increase in numbers from the corresponding period in the previous year. A total of 95 lakh among these tax filers were those that filed their returns for the first time ever.