Read in Hindi: आयकर रिटर्न दाखिल में 71 फीसदी की उछाल

Almost 34.95 lakh returns were uploaded on the last day itself, is the last date of the extended due date of filing of ITRs.

A remarkable increase is seen in the number of ITRs in two categories i.e. ITRs filed by salaried Individuals (ITR-1&2) as also those availing the benefit of the Presumptive Taxation Scheme (ITR-4).

The total number of e-returns of salaried Individual taxpayers filed till the last day increased to 3.37 crore from 2.19 crore returns filed during the corresponding period of 2017, registering an increase of 1.18 crore returns translating into a growth of almost 54%.

A stupendous growth has been witnessed in the number of returns e-filed by persons availing the benefit of Presumptive Tax, with 1.17 crore returns having been filed up to 31st August 2018 compared to 14.93 lakh returns up to 31st August 2017 registering a massive increase of 681.69%.

The increase in the number of returns reveals a marked improvement in the level of voluntary compliance of taxpayers which can be attributed to several factors, including the impact of de-monetization, enhanced persuasion and education of taxpayers as also the impending provision of a late fee which would be effective on late filing of returns. This is indicative of an India moving steadily towards a more tax compliant society and reflects the impact of continuous leveraging of technology to improve taxpayer service delivery.