Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC), apex policy making body for indirect taxes, is facing the acute shortage of members, accordingly, a former CBEC member, retired in February this year, Shashi Bhushan Singh was appointed as adviser to the Board for a period of three months since March 1 to May 31 on contract basis. In the field formations of CBEC near about 2500 Gr-A posts are lying vacant. The CBEC consists of a chairperson and maximum of six members. At present, Kaushal Srivastava is working as CBEC chairperson and Joy Kumari Chander, as lone member. Srivastava is due to retire in June and Chander will demit her office in this month. As there are not enough members, the existing group is having to take extra load. They are devoting more time to supervise the revenue collection and administration. The indirect revenue body has been working without full members since Kaushal Srivastava was elevated to take over as its chief in November last year. The absence of full members in CBEC has hit in revenue collection including departmental cadre restructuring like 14 posts of Principal Chief Commissioner and 2500 nos. of Gr-A posts are lying vacant since October 2014, the date of implementation of cadre restructuring. While the revenue counterparts of CBEC, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) are working with the full of seven members after joining of S K Ray as a member on May 10. The CBDT has also six members apart from the Chairperson and CBDT is responsible for framing policy and administrative issues related to direct taxes and the Income Tax department. However, the Finance Ministry has set a foot process of induction of fresh members to the CBEC and the appointments will be made soon, official sources said. But it is not known when the DPCs for 13-14, 14-15 and 15-16 to grant promotions to different Gr-A posts will be completed. Meanwhile AIACEGEO has started Agitation and urged the Finance Ministry to conduct immediate DPCs to grant promotions in the grade of Asst. Commissioner.
