Cabinet secretariat to hear taxpayer, trader grievances on tax, customs

This means that taxpayers or importers/exporters facing issues such as delays, harassment, or poor service from these departments can now file their complaints with the Directorate of Public Grievances (DPG), which functions under the Cabinet Secretariat.

The decision is expected to improve government accountability and ensure faster resolution of complaints. Until now, such grievances had to be addressed within the respective departments.

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The notification marks a major administrative step in improving public service delivery in two of the most sensitive arms of revenue administration.

According to the official order, the Directorate of Public Grievances—constituted in March 1988 to handle public complaints relating to select central government departments—will now also handle grievances related to the Income Tax Department and the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC), specifically covering customs-related issues.

“With the approval of the competent authority, the jurisdiction of the Directorate of Public Grievances is extended to the Department of Revenue (Income Tax) and CBIC (Customs-related issues),” the notification stated.

According to a senior government official, the decision is part of a broader push towards responsive and accountable governance. “The Directorate, which functions under the Cabinet Secretariat, is mandated to take up individual cases of hardship or inaction in public service delivery and can recommend corrective action at the highest levels,” this official said.

Public grievance redressal has gained renewed attention in recent years, with rising concerns over taxpayer services and procedural hurdles in customs clearances, especially in the wake of India’s efforts to improve its ease of doing business rankings.

The directorate already covers departments such as posts, railways and telecommunications and the latest expansion is seen as a signal of the government’s intent to bring critical public interfaces under greater scrutiny and accountability.

“It’s a well-thought-out move by the government to empower both citizens and traders who often face issues with these two departments. Now, they will have a better grievance mechanism to reach out and get their cases resolved,” said Dattesh Parulekar, assistant professor of international relations at Goa University.

However, a Gurgaon-based textiles exporter, who wished not to be named, said the move will provide significant relief to traders who often struggle to get their GST refunds and have to run from pillar to post to get their issues addressed.

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Union minister of state (independent charge) for personnel Jitendra Singh had said in a written reply in Lok Sabha on 2 April that of over 29 lakh public grievances received by the government through a dedicated online platform, around 26.45 lakh were redressed in 2024.

The complaints were received on the Centralized Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS)—an online platform where citizens can raise complaints.

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“A total of 1,15,52,503 grievances were redressed from 2020-2024 and an annual all-time high of 26,45,869 grievances (90.5%) have been redressed on CPGRAMS portal from January-December, 2024,” Singh had said.