Sitharaman urges ITRAF to make tax research more visible in policy process

Sitharaman also praised the contribution of tax policy expert Parthasarathi Shome, who chairs ITRAF, recalling her interaction with him after she became Minister of State for Finance in 2014

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday urged the International Tax Research and Analysis Foundation (ITRAF) to make its independent tax policy research more visible and contribute directly to policymaking and public discourse.

Addressing the Eighth International Tax Conference on 'New Age Taxation' organised by ITRAF here, Sitharaman said India had professionals and experts of the highest calibre in taxation but needed stronger institutional platforms to bring their expertise together and contribute to policy choices.

"You have so far contributed quietly, and I would now urge you to contribute visibly, because I understand that the commentary you produce is of such high quality and it reaches the profession, but it should also reach the policy processes, and it should reach the public at large," she said.

Sitharaman said ITRAF had brought together chief financial officers and tax heads of major technology companies, senior advocates, partners of leading professional firms and academicians who had contributed to international taxation for more than a decade.

She said ITRAF had published seven volumes and organised conferences with institutions including those at The Hague, the London School of Economics and the Chartered Institute of Taxation in London.