Cabinet approves changes in Customs Act

The Cabinet today approved the amendment to Customs Act,1962,that would help the exchequer safeguard its revenues. The amendment would allow specifically recognised customs officers to assess import duty. The recognition to customs officials would be from retrospective effect,Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni said.

The amendment bill,to be introduced in the forthcoming session of Parliament,will help the government to recover customs duty worth several thousands of crores,Soni added. Officers of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence DRI will alone have issued notices involving customs duty to the tune of over Rs 7,500 crore8230;Also tax evaders will not get benefited at the expense of exchequer on a mere technical ground, she said.

In another decision the Cabinet approved a proposal to bring a new legislation for tougher norms regarding benami transactions. A new Benami Transactions Prohibition Bill,2011,will replace the existing Benami Transactions Prohibition Act,1988.

Under the proposed new law,anyone violating the rule can be jailed for not less than six months,which may be extended to two years and also be liable to a fine.

The Cabinet also approved the merger of State Bank of India Commercial and International Bank Ltd SBICI with its parent bank State Bank of India. SBICI,is a wholly owned subsidiary of SBI and functions as a private sector bank offering an array of financial products and services.