DG's speech - Directorate General of Training & Research

Honorable Chairman FBR,It is my privilege to extend to you Sir, a warm and a hearty welcome to theDirectorate General of Training and Research, Lahore. You have indeedhonored us by accepting our invitation, for which the faculty, theprobationary officers and myself are most thankful.2. A warm welcome also to the Senior Officers of the Board, Ex-Directors General, Faculty Members, Young Officers & their Proud Parents!3. I take immense pleasure in saying that this day is a turning point inthe lives of our probationary officers, who are passing out today to join theirfield duties after a seven-month long strenuous professional training thatrequired dedication, diligence and application of mind. Among several otherthings, the training aimed at providing them a pragmatic and practicalorientation, so as to preclude, or at least ease out, the teething problems thatare usually encountered on first assuming official responsibilities.4. Though I joined as the Director General in the middle of the course, Ihave a strong inkling that it has been has been a rewarding experience forthe probationers and has groomed them well for the challenges ahead. Eversince I assumed this position, I tried to prioritize, emphasize and introducecertain matters needed to enhance the competencies of the trainees.5. A very pertinent lesson that my long stint in the field has taught me, isthat for optimum results in specialized training, it is a must to introduce andemphasize the practical aspects. With this end in view we embarked upon

introducing the simulation classes by preparing folders containingdocuments that the probationary officers are expected to encounter in theiroffices. It is thus only fair to say that the probationers are now familiar andwell-conversant with the various forms and statements in vogue and theyknow how to examine and scrutinize them, so as to lay the finger on theshortcomings and possible trails leading to detection of tax evasion andfraud.6. The creativity of the officers is at its peak at present & in order tobring it out fully we helped them bring out the first issue of the magazinenamed by the probationers as “DOT GUPSHUP”. I am sure that as timepasses they will treasure this gupshup more and more. Copies of themagazine are available for you all to appreciate.7. In the past the Directorate had been too preoccupied with the trainingaspect alone and there was little emphasis on quality Research. Realizingthis I constituted two teams from amongst the members of the faculty towork on two important subjects purely from the point of view of benefitingthe trainee and the field officers.On the Direct Taxes side the first team’s project related to tapping the realpotential of withholding taxes through their effective monitoring. The firstdraft of a detailed folio is ready and after necessary deliberation by theentire faculty its final copy will be submitted to the Board soon.The second team is making a critical appraisal of the phenomenon of

claiming illegal Sales Tax input, meticulously highlighting the lacunas andloopholes, not only in the substantive law but also in the procedures thatleave ample scope for collusion and tax fraud. The paper once ready, islikely to suggest some corrective and remedial measures which it is hopedwill be looked into by the experts at the Board and remedial measures taken.8. Now I turn my attention to the in-service training of officers of IRS.The format of such trainings has also been modified to suit the modernrequirements and instead of imparting lectures, participative learning isbeing preferred. The participants of such workshops are required to bringwith them their assessment orders or notices, relevant to the subject, for acandid, collective, critical and incisive analysis that can ruthlessly carve outthe strengths and weaknesses. Moreover for the in-service training ofmiddle management officers, collaboration with the ACCA is also on thecards, in the form of programs specially tailored to our specific needs.Negotiations in this respect are at an advanced stage and the draft MOUwith ACCA shall soon be on your table for final approval and signatures.9. Let me express my profound gratitude to the German Government’sinitiative in extending her helping hand to improve governance indeveloping countries through GIZ. The representatives of GIZ in Pakistanhave not only assisted DOT in conducting certain trainings especially in thefield of “Cross Border Transactions” they also supported us by providing uswith some hardware like air-conditioners and photo-copiers. They werealso generous in supporting our efforts to revamp our old library by

providing us with some books which we could not purchase from our ownresources.10. Taking advantage of your presence here, Sir, I wish to bring to yournotice certain issues, so that remedial measures, if deemed appropriate, canbe initiated at the highest level.11. Hostel: There is an urgent need for a new hostel for the probationers.The present hostel has 30 rooms, out of which two rooms are occupied byDOT Customs and only 28 are available for the probationers. The rooms,which are barely designed for single occupancy, are being used for doubleoccupancy. With the next batch of 55 officers round the corner the presentfacilities will be literally bursting at the seams!12. Electricity Generator: Sir, the DOT premises being close to acommercial area, is subjected to the worst kind of load shedding ofelectricity and the present old generator cannot meet the round the clockrequirements of the campus. DOT thus needs a new 300 KVA generator onpriority.13. Transport: It has been quite difficult to smoothly handle the transportrequirements of the 37 probationers of 39 th STP with the two availablecoasters but with a batch of 55 probationers of 40 th STP due in April, thingswill go awry, without the addition of a third coaster. Hence it is veryimportant that a new coaster be provided to DOT.14. Sports Complex: Sir, sports also play a very vital role in the character-

uilding of any nation. We at DOT are not oblivious to this and are makingrapid progress towards the completion of Jinnah Sports Complex of DOT.The sports complex comprises a badminton court, a squash court, andsnooker and table-tennis rooms. A swimming pool is also underconstruction. It is however worth pointing out that we need the necessarytables for snooker & table-tennis and the equipment for the badmintoncourt, squash courts and gymnasium to make the complex functional.15. Residential Colony: DOT has a residential colony having fiveresidences. However, all those residences have been placed in the generalpool of residences for the officers in Lahore and as a result none of thesehouses has been allotted to any officer posted at DOT! It will only be justand fair that the colony with designated houses for DG and Director may bereverted to DOT.16. National & International Trainings: At this juncture I must alsomention that the officers who opt to be posted at DOT be encouraged byawarding them long and short courses abroad and domestically in order tohone their skills further. It is proposed that medium and long term specificneed-based courses be arranged for our faculty members at institutions likeLUMS, IBA, Harvard, Melbourne University, IBFD Netherlands, MalaysianTax Academy, Indian Tax Academy, Tax Academy JAPAN and LondonSchool of Economics.17. In the end Sir, I admit, that I can very well empathize with the youngofficers sitting here. When they joined DOT, it must have been with mixed

feelings -- hopes, aspirations, apprehensions __ and they were a motleygroup, but as they await the dawn of their new career, sitting here withbeaming faces, they have turned into a cohesive group, which will havelifelong associations and will carry a trail of fond memories of their stay andstudy at DOT. I now leave the podium with the advice for the probationersthat once they are in the field they will be acting as the economic soldiersand must strive their best for resource mobilization for the motherland asthe existing tax to GDP ratio does not present a rosy picture. I wish them allthe best once again