Income tax department to lease 6 lakh square feet office space

MUMBAI: Asked by the government to boost revenue, the Income Tax department is looking for more office space in the financial capital as it expects its staff strength

MUMBAI: Asked by the government to boost revenue, the Income Tax department is looking for more office space in the financial capital as it expects its staff strength to increase, said a senior official.

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The department is planning to lease six lakh sq ft area in the city, of which it has booked two lakh sq ft of developed property at various locations in Mumbai.

The department is currently eyeing a 45,000 sq ft MTNL building in Walkeshwar and another MTNL-owned building Vashi, which has an area of 30,000 sq ft.

According to an estimate, as against the sanctioned staff strength of 5,200 for the Mumbai zone, the department currently has more than 4,000 employees, with 200-500 staffers being added annually.

“The IT department has expanded in terms of collection of revenues and manpower. Hence a lot of extra space is required. That is why we are trying to acquire new office spaces in the city,” D S Saksena, principal chief commissioner, income tax, Mumbai told PTI.

“While the revenue collections are increasing here by 10-12 per cent annually, we have to provide accommodation to the constantly-increasing workforce of the department,” he said.

The Mumbai zone of the IT department collected revenue worth Rs 2.48 trillion in the past year and is looking at a figure of Rs 2.78 trillion for this financial year.

Several premises in the city have been on lease to the department in the recent past.

“We have hired eight floors in the Air India building in Nariman Point, measuring 1.25 lakh square feet. We have also hired 1.5 lakh sq ft in Ernest House building in Nariman Point and three floors of MTNL building, located at Cumbala Hill in South Mumbai,” he said.

Saksena said the department recently constructed 56 quarters at the Bandra-Kurla Complex to accommodate its commissioners and additional commissioners.