The Meghalaya government has decided to provide incentives to all India service officers serving in the state government who have to pay income tax.
Employees of the state government who are working outside the state like in Meghalaya houses are also entitled to the incentive because they are subjected to payment of income tax, although they are tribals from the state.
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Deputy chief minister Prestone Tynsong told reporters that as per the Income Tax Act, non-tribal all India service officers are subjected to pay income tax annually.
“However we have decided that the state government will reimburse 95 percent of the total amount due to be paid as income tax by these all India service officers,” he said.
“We understand the all India service officers who come to work in Meghalaya from different parts of the country. We want to make sure that they also get some special incentives. Therefore, the state government has approved this, and henceforth, 95 percent of the total dues payable to the income tax will be reimbursed by the state government,” said the Deputy CM.
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Tynsong said that with this decision, Meghalaya became the first state government that has taken the decision to provide incentives to all India service officers who are serving the state but not exempted from paying income tax.
“No other state governments have taken this decision and we are the only state even in the North East and the whole country to provide this special package to all India service officers,” Tynsong stated.
Tynsong said that the state cabinet also discussed the state government employees working outside the state like in Meghalaya Houses because these employees have been also subjected to payment of income tax although they are tribals.
“For tribal officers and employees also, who have to pay income tax, the state government will provide reimbursement to all of them annually. The expenditure that the state government has to spend annually for the all India service officers is not less than Rs 1.45 crore annually,” Tynsong said.
For tribal officers and employees of the state government working outside the state, Tynsong said that the concerned departments have been directed to work it out on the amount required by the government to spend annually.
Tynsong also clarified that for those all India service officers who go on deputation, the incentive will not be applicable, but after they joined back, they are entitled to reimbursement.
To a question why the state government has to provide the incentives, Tynsong said that there were many factors that the government felt the need to do something for the officers who come and serve in the state of Meghalaya.
“Why not we show some kind of goodness to them by extending this special package to all senior officers who are posted here in Meghalaya,” he said.