The Income Tax Gazetted Officers’ Association highlighted persistent system-related challenges affecting officers during the critical time-barring period at the end of the financial year. Despite earlier representations and partial improvements, officers continue to face delays in routine functions such as issuing notices due to digital signature issues, conducting hearings via video conferencing, and processing assessments through CPC. Numerous cases remain pending for months, with unresolved helpdesk tickets and repeated re-computation requests. The ITBA system suffers from poor performance, especially on weekends, along with login issues and workflow disruptions. Officers are also burdened with grievance redressal directives during peak workload periods, risking procedural lapses. Additionally, resource constraints such as inadequate laptops, uneven workload distribution, and weak system support further aggravate the situation. The Association urged intervention to improve system efficiency and temporarily relax grievance redressal pressures to ensure timely completion of statutory actions and avoid unintended time-barred cases.
Income Tax Gazetted Officers’ Association
President
SAYANTAN BANERJEE
(8902197979)
Sayantanbanerjee2001@yahoo.com
Secretary General
J P SINGH
(8005445445)
secgenchqitgoa@gmail.com
Date: 23-03-2026
To
The Chairman,
Central Board of Direct Taxes,
Kartavya Bhawan,
New Delhi.
Respected Sir,
Sub: System-related issues continuing to trouble our members during this crucial last fortnight of the FY, posing challenges for time-barring actions – reg.
Your kind attention is invited to our earlier letter dated 02.02.2026 regarding the artificial deadline set by the Principal CCIT, NaFAC, New Delhi during the video conference held on 29.01.2026. In that communication, we had detailed the various system-related issues being faced by our members in both Faceless and Jurisdictional charges, which were also discussed with your goodself and other concerned authorities. We sincerely acknowledge the corrective initiatives taken thereafter and the system has shown improvement to certain extent. However, as on date, our members continue to face persisting system-related challenges, even during this crucial time-barring fortnight, which are adversely impacting their efforts to complete all time-barring actions in a timely manner.
Even routine actions such as issuing letters and notices are getting delayed for days due to problem of digital signing. Technical difficulties also persist in providing hearing opportunities through video conferencing. Our members are also encountering recurring computation issues at CPC. Final assessment orders remain pending in the worklist even after being sent for accounting, as CPC is not closing such cases within a reasonable time. Even, the cases sent to CPC for computation in September, 2025 are still pending at that end and the Tickets raised are not replied with. Further, in cases where the system permits manual order upload, technical error messages are frequently encountered; and even where uploads are successful, CPC is taking inordinately long to close such cases, often reverting them to the Assessing Officer for re-computation.
Also, the JAO charges are reeling under the pressure for ‘Grievance Redressal’. At the fag-end of the Financial Year, when the process of completion of all kinds of TB jobs is at its peak, higher-authorities are directing the field officers to focus on ‘Grievance Redressal’ and dispose of the same even without following the due procedure, which may result in erroneous redressal of grievances.
The ITBA network continues to perform below par, and the situation worsens over weekends, precisely when members are required to work round the clock during the time-barring period. At times, even login issues are being faced on departmental laptops. It also appears that schedulers are not running over weekends, resulting in stalled or restricted movement of cases between AU and RU or vice versa and other related workflows. Compounding these difficulties is the persistent underperformance of the ITBA helpdesk, which remains a significant concern for all users and shows no visible improvement despite repeated deliberations.
Sir, despite the numerous constraints, such as persistent system-related issues (as outlined above), non-availability of departmental laptops to a large number of officers, the burden of additional charges arising from single-window access and a lopsided work allocation ecosystem leaving many staff members underutilised, our members continue to perform with commendable commitment and are making every effort to complete all time-barring actions within the prescribed timelines. This, they are achieving despite the inadequate administrative, system and network support.
We have repeatedly flagged these concerns through written communications as well as during formal or informal interactions, unfortunately without marked improvements. We seek your kind intervention once again to ensure smooth functioning of ITBA/CPC/Systems, and also to withdraw the pressure of ‘Grievance Redressal’, till 31st of March so that all TB cases, both in FAO & JAO, may be accomplished properly. Sir, you will appreciate that our members should not be made responsible for any eventuality of cases getting time-barred on account of the above-mentioned systems and administrative constraints.
This is for your kind consideration and necessary intervention.
Thanking you,
Yours sincerely,
(J P Singh)
Secretary General
Copy for information and necessary action to:
Member (S & FS), CBDT, New Delhi
