BAHAWALPUR, Oct 13: The Central Board of Revenue has set Rs249 billion sales tax recovery target for the current financial year. This was stated by CBR member for sales tax and central excise Shahid Ahmed while talking to Dawn here on Wednesday.

He said the CBR had recovered Rs219 billion sales tax during the last financial year. During the first quarter of the current fiscal year from July to September, he said the CBR had collected Rs50 billion sales tax, a 20 per cent increase as compared to the corresponding period of the last financial year.

Earlier, Mr Shahid addressed a joint meeting of office bearers of Bahawalpur Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association, Oil Mills Association, Markazi Anjuman-i-Tajran, Tax Bar Association and income tax officials.

The CBR member asked the trading community to come forward and get their registration voluntarily for sales tax payment in the larger interest of the country. He said the sales tax was enforced in 1996 and with the passage of time the procedure was being improved and made simplified.

The on line registration facility for the sales tax was being introduced soon for the retailers of Karachi, Faisalabad and Lahore. He said the retailers with over Rs5 million turnover should get their registration for the payment of sales tax.

He announced the formation of an advisory committee of the Bahawalpur chamber and sales tax department officials to solve the problems of local traders in respect of sales tax.

In future, he said the local retailers and industrialists would not have to go to Multan for the redressal of their grievances as this committee would meet once in a month. Earlier, BCCI president Chaudhry Abdul Sattar highlighted the problems faced by the local business community.