Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s Union Budget 2024 has given experts and analysts food for thought. Among the key topics they discussed was the government’s approach to tax reforms.

Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Sanjay Malhotra, Secretary of Revenue, emphasised that the government is committed to easing the compliance burden on taxpayers.

“In terms of whether we can further reduce the compliance burden for TDS, certainly that is something on the cards and we should certainly be looking at it,” Malhotra stated.

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Underscoring the importance of TDS in the current tax framework, Malhotra stated that today the government collects almost 51% of revenues through TDS and so it is not just a tracing and tracking mechanism, it is also vital for tax collection.

He acknowledged that while the ideal scenario would be to use TDS solely as a trace and track mechanism, India is still years away from achieving this. The primary objective remains taxing income as it accrues and is earned, with TDS serving this critical function.

Watch accompanying video entire discussion.