**Executive Summary**
This document presents the Ministry of Finance's response to an unstarred question in Lok Sabha regarding income tax filings in West Bengal for Assessment Year 2024-25. It provides data on the number of Income Tax Returns (ITRs) filed by residents of West Bengal across various income categories, comparing these figures with previous assessment years. The document also details the state's contribution to national direct tax collections and outlines measures being taken by the Government to expand the tax base and compliance across the country.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **ITR Filing Statistics for West Bengal (AY 2024-25):**
* Provides a breakdown of the number of ITRs filed in West Bengal for AY 2024-25, categorized by income slabs (less than ₹5 lakh, ₹5-7 lakh, ₹7-12 lakh, more than ₹12 lakh, more than ₹1 crore, and greater than ₹10 crore).
* The total number of ITRs filed in AY 2024-25 was 52.99 lakh.
* **Trend in ITR Filings:**
* Tax filings from West Bengal show a consistent increase over the past four assessment years (AY 2021-22 to AY 2024-25).
* The upward trend reflects steady year-on-year growth in return filing across income categories, with notable increases in the middle- and higher-income brackets.
* **Contribution to National Direct Tax Collection:**
* West Bengal contributed 3.14% of the national direct tax collection in FY 2023-24 and 2.89% in FY 2024-25.
* The state's net collections rose from ₹60,374.64 crore to ₹63,075.47 crore.
* **Government Measures to Expand Tax Base and Compliance:**
* **Pre-filling of Income-tax Returns:** Providing pre-filled ITRs with information on salary, bank interest, dividends, etc.
* **Updated Return:** Facilitating taxpayers to update returns within four years of the assessment year to correct omissions.
* **Reduction in Corporate Tax Rate:** Gradually reducing corporate tax rates while phasing out exemptions to increase the tax base.
* **Simplification of Personal Income Tax:** Offering lower tax slab rates to individual taxpayers who forgo specified exemptions.
* **Black Money Act:** Enacting the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015 to curb black money.
* **Benami Law:** Amending the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act to confiscate Benami Property.
* **Expansion of TDS/TCS Scope:** Broadening TDS/TCS to include transactions like huge cash withdrawals, foreign remittances, and luxury purchases.
* **Non-Filer Monitoring System (NMS):** Implementing NMS to identify individuals who have undertaken high-value transactions but have not filed ITRs.
**Impact Analysis**
**Taxpayers in West Bengal**
* **Impact:** Taxpayers will gain insight on filing data, especially how the data is distributed amongst income categories.
* **Action Required:** No action is specified for taxpayers, but they can use the information for comparison and understanding.
**Income Tax Department**
* **Impact:** The Income Tax Department can use the data to assess the effectiveness of their tax collection strategies in West Bengal.
* **Action Required:** Continue implementing and refining measures to expand the tax base and improve compliance.
**Ministry of Finance**
* **Impact:** The Ministry can evaluate the overall tax revenue trends and assess the performance of tax policies.
* **Action Required:** The Ministry should monitor the tax collection trends in West Bengal and compare them with other major states to identify areas for improvement.
Key Entities Referenced
Ministry of Finance: The central ministry responsible for finance in India, the primary subject of the document.
Income Tax Act: The primary legislation governing income tax in India, mentioned concerning updated returns under Section 139(8A).
West Bengal: The specific state whose income tax filings and tax contributions are being addressed.
Finance Act: Indian legislation which amends existing laws regarding financial matters (corporate tax rates and simplification of income tax).
Income Tax Returns (ITRs): The form used to file income tax, the main data point being analyzed.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF FINANCE
DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 57
TO BE ANSWERED ON MONDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2025/AGRAHAYANA 10, 1947 (SAKA)
‘Income Tax Filings in West Bengal for Assessment Year 2024-25’
57. Shri. Jagannath Sarkar:
Will the Minister of FINANCE be pleased to state: -
(a) The total number of Income Tax Return (ITRs) filed by residents of West Bengal in
Assessment Year (AY) 2024-25, in the income categories of less than 5 lakh, 5 lakh to 7
lakh, 7 lakh to 12 lakh, more than 12 lakh, more than 1 crore and more than 10 crore;
(b) The corresponding number of taxpayers in each of these categories as compared to
previous assessment years;
(c) Whether there has been an increase or decrease in tax filings from West Bengal;
(d) The percentage of the total national direct tax from West Bengal and the manner in which
it compares to other major states in the country; and;
(e) The measures taken/being taken by the Government to expand the tax base in West
Bengal and encourage more compliance among high-income earners?
ANSWER
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE
(SHRI PANKAJ CHAUDHARY)
(a) & (b) The total number of Income Tax Returns (ITRs) filed by residents of West Bengal in
Assessment Year (AY) 2024-25, in the Income category - less than ₹ 5 lakh, ₹ 5 lakh to
₹7 lakh, ₹ 7 lakh to ₹12 lakh, more than ₹12 lakh, more than ₹1 crore and more than₹10 crore and corresponding number of taxpayers in each of these categories as compared to
previous assessment years are given in the table below –
Table-1: Summary of ITRs in the state of West Bengal
Sr. Range of Return- AY 2021- AY 2022-23 AY 2023-24 AY 2024-25
No. Income (Total Income) 22
1 Less than ₹ 5 lakh 34,43,348 35,79,834 38,27,759 27,13,686
2 ₹ 5 lakh to ₹ 7 lakh 3,90,179 4,23,309 4,50,107 14,55,068
3 ₹ 7 lakh to ₹ 12 lakh 3,55,494 3,90,918 4,20,628 5,75,450
4 More than ₹ 12 lakh to ₹ 2,43,787 3,14,009 3,69,479 5,34,662
1 crore
5 More than ₹ 1 crore to ₹ 8,852 12,362 13,471 18,048
10 crore
6 Greater than ₹ 10 crore 878 1,258 1,362 1,719
44,42,538 47,21,690 50,82,806 52,98,633
(c) As shown in Table -1 above in answer to query (a), Tax filings from West Bengal have shown
a consistent increase over the past four assessment years. The total number of ITRs filed rose
from 44.42 lakh in AY 2021-22 to 47.21 lakh in AY 2022-23, further to 50.82 lakh in AY
2023-24, and reached 52.99 lakh in AY 2024-25. This upward trend reflects steady year-on-
year growth in return filing across income categories, with particularly notable increases in
the middle- and higher-income brackets in the most recent year.
(d) West Bengal contributed 3.14% of the national direct tax collection in FY 2023-24 and 2.89%
in FY 2024-25, with net collections rising from ₹60,374.64 crore to ₹63,075.47 crore. While
the state maintains a steady revenue contribution, its share remains moderate when compared
with major tax-contributing states such as Maharashtra, Karnataka, Delhi, Tamil Nadu,
Gujarat, and Haryana, which together account for a substantially larger portion of the national
direct tax collections.
Table-2: Contribution of West Bengal in the Total National Direct Tax Collection and
comparison to other major states
S. State / UT Net Collection FY Share Net Collection FY Share
No. 2023-24 (₹ Cr) % 2024-25 (₹ Cr) %
1 Andhra Pradesh 26,066.46 1.36 23,804.85 1.09
2 Arunachal 233.98 0.01 150.60 0.01
Pradesh3 Assam 7,510.93 0.39 6,819.31 0.31
4 Bihar 6,692.73 0.35 6,904.99 0.32
5 Jharkhand 10,500.59 0.55 10,712.95 0.49
6 Goa 3,867.43 0.20 4,515.85 0.21
7 Gujarat 93,300.72 4.86 107,241.41 4.91
8 Haryana 70,947.31 3.69 79,731.48 3.65
9 Himachal 3,150.17 0.16 3,076.54 0.14
Pradesh
10 Karnataka 2,34,098.39 12.18 2,61,528.83 11.97
11 Kerala 23,966.92 1.25 27,974.60 1.28
12 Madhya 20,086.99 1.05 19,639.22 0.90
Pradesh
13 Chhattisgarh 13,534.13 0.70 12,518.10 0.57
14 Maharashtra 7,61,716.30 39.65 8,97,425.86 41.08
15 Manipur 323.12 0.02 368.17 0.02
16 Meghalaya 1,800.73 0.09 2,174.48 0.10
17 Mizoram 81.78 0.00 74.46 0.00
18 Nagaland 344.10 0.02 225.27 0.01
19 Delhi 2,03,197.06 10.58 2,29,250.33 10.49
20 Odisha 20,865.54 1.09 25,444.08 1.16
21 Punjab 17,215.00 0.90 19,656.65 0.90
22 Rajasthan 30,551.42 1.59 34,382.78 1.57
23 Sikkim 287.83 0.01 292.17 0.01
24 Tamil Nadu 1,27,067.17 6.61 1,32,368.09 6.06
25 Tripura 417.38 0.02 387.29 0.02
26 Uttar Pradesh 48,333.44 2.52 69,011.21 3.16
27 Uttarakhand 15,861.49 0.83 2,629.65 0.12
28 West Bengal 60,374.64 3.14 63,075.47 2.89
29 Telangana 84,439.24 4.39 97,860.86 4.48
(e) Measures to expand the tax base are taken by the Government across the country. These
measures are not specifically confined to a particular state. Accordingly, following measures
have been taken by the Government to expand the tax base and compliance across the
country:
• Pre-filling of Income-tax Returns: To make tax compliance more convenient, pre-filled
Income tax Returns (ITR) have been provided to individual taxpayers. The scope of
information for pre-filing includes information such as salary income, bank interest,
dividends, etc.• Updated Return: Section 139(8A) of the Income Tax Act facilitates the taxpayer to
update his return anytime within four years from the end of the relevant assessment so that
he can file an updated return by voluntarily admitting omissions or mistakes and paying an
additional tax as applicable.
• Reduction in the Corporate tax rate: Starting from the Finance Act, 2016, the corporate
tax rates have been gradually reduced while phasing out the exemptions and incentives
available to the corporates to increase the tax base.
• Simplification of the Personal Income Tax: Finance Act, 2020 simplified the filing of
Income Tax Returns by providing an option to individual taxpayers for paying income-tax
at lower slab rates if they do not avail specified exemption and incentive.
• Black Money Act: To curb the flow of black money stashed abroad, the Black Money
(Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015 (the Black
Money Act) has been enacted, it increased the voluntary compliance in filing Income Tax
Returns.
• Benami Law: The Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988 was comprehensively
amended by the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amendment Act, 2016 to enable
confiscation of Benami Property and prosecution of benamidar and the beneficial owner.
• Expansion of scope of TDS/TCS: For bringing new taxpayers into the net of income tax
department, scope of TDS/TCS was expanded by including huge cash withdrawal, foreign
remittance, purchase of luxury car, e-commerce participants, sale of goods, acquisition of
immovable property, remittance under LRS, purchase of overseas tour program package
etc.
• Income Tax Department has implemented Non-Filer Monitoring System (NMS), which
assimilates and analyses taxpayer information, including information received from third
parties to identify persons/entities who have undertaken high value financial transactions
but have not filed their Income tax returns.
*****