Holistic - Who lives where

We keep reading about not sufficient housing for our population and GOI talking about housing for all. In addition we have a problem of those seeking shelter not getting accommodation from those who have space to let out for various reasons, which include caste and religion. While the preferences of tenant are of personal choice as such there is a situation of people hiring premises and carrying out nefarious activities, this is a regular problem for police, since they have no info till an offence takes place.

It is also noted that our local bodies like municipalities and corporations are short funded due to improper tax collection since their systems do not allow them to monitor different types of usage of a property and also due to the corruption at the lower level.

There is a need to integrate different departments of the govt in having a single platform to have a total count of various properties located in a city/town/village. It can also monitor who is occupying which property.

A software platform will be designed to capture info and cater to the following people.

Panchayat/Municipality/Corporation: Every property which has been identified as house/commercial property will be listed out by the respective local body. Using this platform every property owner will list out his dwelling info, including the Carpet and super built up area. No of floors, no of portions that could be let out. While filling in this information the property owner will have to fill in information like, his Aadhar number, property acquisition details like purchase/ inheritance document, Property tax assessment details etc. This info can be cross verified with the available records with the local body, if any discrepancy is found authorities can verify and update their records as per the factual info and not penalise the property owner nor harass them and there after charge property tax accordingly. Any deviation is a collusion between the property owner and govt staff.

DTCP/UDA: As and when a land use is changed either for commercial or residential purpose, the info will be updated into this software by this department, this will effectively ensure whether the layouts are legal or not. They will have authority to create the new plots info, this info could be used by the respective local body for their future planning of facilities and city improvement.

Registration Department: When ever a property is coming for registration, the concerned officer can verify if the property seller info is correct as per the registered record in this software. After due verification the property transfer will be carried out. There could be methods to send alerts to the recorded property owner through mobile or email about the impending sale.

Revenue Department: Since this department is involved in the change of use of a property they could also be provided access and authorisation role for property conversion. This will ensure all layouts will be legal.

Police: All property owners will be required to use this software for entering the details of the tenants to whom they have let out the property. All identification information of the tenant will have to be updated in this software for all the family members that will be living in that property. In case the property is let out for commercial activity, details of the office information like tax registration number, Owner/directors Aadhar/DIN/PAN nos etc. As and when a new tenant is coming to a property in a particular police station jurisdiction, the department will be alerted and subsequently they can verify the antecedents of the tenant in a sophisticated manner.

Salestax/Shops & Establishments: These departments can use this software to verify if the owner has given permission for this property to set up this establishment and after convincing themselves, they can issue the necessary certificate. With departmental verification happening, it would be easy for the local body to collect tax as per the usage as residential or commercial.

Service Providers: On a commercial basis, service providers like telecom, insurance, banking businesses can be asked to verify from this software for KYC norms.

Election Commission: It would become much easier for the EC to issue voter id cards based on this software and verification available through this software. Any change of residence can be automatically tracked through this software.

Civil Supplies Department: Since ration is issued to various house holds based on the information made available to the department, this can be cross verified by checking the info on this platform.

RTA: Road transport authorities can cross verify the info and register vehicles to that address and also can record the presence of these vehicles to that location and address. This could help in enumerating the number of vehicles a house hold owns/uses etc.

These are few departments that come to my mind, any other concerned department as felt by the GOI/SG can be included. It is necessary to provide access for this data on a holistic basis to various investigative agencies if required.

At every step a simple verification system (confirmatory mobile/Email response with a OTP) can be used to ensure all departments are getting proper and authenticated info.

Once this information is collected after eliminating duplication there will be comprehensive information available with the state and central govt on the population of every place, migration data, growth areas which will help them to plan welfare and development programs.

Writing the software will be the easiest part, first department will be the local bodies which will have to upload the living spaces info, so that property owners then can upload their info in full about the occupation info, including vacant position.

• There could be additional features where people can register for going on vacation, so that cops can monitor those properties more regularly.
• All properties under litigation will be recorded accordingly and as and when a court decided on the ownership, the same can be updated accordingly. In the event someone is living in that place, living info only will be captured, eliminating the conflicted data.
• Every department which will issue ID's like passport, driving licence, PAN card etc can use this platform not only to verify but also to update with the document details issued by them.
• What info should be seen by whom and who will have info on a totality basis can be determined by the MOH affairs.
• New born info can be updated by the Local body as and when it happens, similarly death, marriage etc., can be recorded accordingly.
• Since the original info will be uploaded by the user, the correctness of the info like spellings etc will be accurate and the same data can be used for printing out various certificates. Where ever there is discrepancy, it has to be substantiated with evidence by the user.

Once the platform is created, public would be given good 3-6 months time to update their info and after that those who have not done so will be visited by officers and help people update the info during a grace period beyond which penalty can be levied. If Telangana State could carry out a survey in a period of two days across the state with a population of 4 crores, nothing is impossible.

To avoid hurdles legal status should be issued to this legislation and implemented accordingly. This could bring in some changes like uniform numbering of households (today every local body follows its own method of allotting numbers to properties).

GST how to make it more effective?

It is now more than 6 years since i have been hearing about introduction of GST nationwide and now the latest date set is 2016. Good lets have it, it could rationalise the taxation system in our country and bring down many systemic deficiencies in tax collection.

Today we have goods moving in various modes of transport (Bus, Truck, Rail, air, sea and even private transport) and lot of it going without any kind of check for reasons best known to the authorities.

I believe there could be a simple process for this whole movement of goods and reduce corruption. It is multi pronged and could work.

When a manufacturer prepares an invoice, he includes the information like, buyers name, address, tax registration details (TIN No) and his invoice also carries his own information in addition to the goods that are being transported vide that invoice. As soon as all this info is fed in a centralised GST website, a unique Bar /QR code will get generated. This code will be readable by the machines deployed with taxation authorities.

This code will be printable on any white paper/sticker paper. When these goods are loaded into a transporting vehicle, which ever mode it may be, that particular vehicle operator in turn will generate a unique code from the same website, which will have a section for the transporters. That means the consignment carrier will be having a Bar/QR code which will have the total information of the goods being carried in that vehicle as recorded in the central server of the GOI.

As the vehicle passes through the borders of any state, driver/cleaner will have to walk up to a kiosk where a reader machine will be installed and he has to just pass this bar/QR code under that reader and he will simply get a pass printed out by the machine attached to that reader (just like a ATM receipt). Machine in turn would have recorded the goods movement at that particular state border in the central GST server. As long as the goods destined for a destination (Ex: Origin of goods is Punjab and destination is Kerala, all state check posts where these goods are supposed to pass through will record the movement of the same) this info in turn gets recorded in the central GST server. The goods movement can also be observed by the transport owner by accessing the central website, which will give him the time stamp of where the last check in of his vehicle was.

Just to ensure there is no illegal movement of goods, there could be officers equipped with the bar/QR code reading machines and they will have to just scan the code that is being carried by the transporter and verify the border passes that were printed by the respective border check post. This is just to ensure compliance.

On receipt of the goods by the intended recipient, he has to simply get the code read by the machine installed in his place, the invoice through which he has received the goods. Goods movement will get recorded by the central GST server as received by the buyer. He in turn as and when sells the goods will be following the similar process.

Every goods transporter will have to follow these steps and ensure they record which goods they are carrying irrespective whether they are allowed to transport goods legally, including private transport. Let private transport be levied a fee for this purpose to avoid harassment by the cops/RTA for illegal carriage of goods, this can again be through this central system.

Once the goods reach the state through its border check post and has been received by the buyer, state servers will get notified of the arrival of the goods in that state, thereafter it becomes the responsibility of the state to ensure further taxes on that goods are recovered within that state. In case these goods further move out of this state, similar procedure would be adopted.

When every transaction is recorded, on the central server and is accessed by concerned, to the extent they are allowed to access, then the transparency will be very high. It has to be mandatory for every trader, manufacturer, since they are accessing the central server, it could be either from their own internet connection or from a public internet (in case they cant afford to have their own computer)

This entire process will eliminate goods purchased for personal consumption only. Since all invoices and goods carrier will be carrying a unique code generated by the central server, when the intermediary checking officers scan the document their own reader will give them info on where the goods are being transported to and if there is any irregularities, they can immediately cease the consignment/vehicle until required proof of genuinity is provided. In case goods have been taken out without proper generation of Bar/QR code, then the seller/sender will be fined heavily. This will ensure better compliance.

Since all goods that are manufactured and transported have been recorded, then it is the job of tax officials to ensure proper remittance of tax is made. The need for integrated check posts and massive goods scanning installations can be avoided. All the officials required for these places can be usefully deployed in tax collection.

There is going to be an area of concern for individuals who will be sending their household / used goods etc., through transport vehicles either on transfer of residence or for their near and dear ones. Even these people will be asked to enter their Aadhar number and the details of the material sent in the central server and they in turn will be provided with a Bar/QR code and they have to hand over the same to the transporter who will be carrying the goods to the destination.

Certain other fringe benefits, Drug/Food manufacturers can be asked to add batch numbers in the invoice, which will carry the info on expiry etc., since all the info is machine readable, it will ensure stricter compliance on goods that have expired etc. Also weight of the consignment also can be added as part of the invoicing, when a transporter will start adding all these parcels for his movement, the server will immediately reject any overloading, that way ensuring the goods transporters don’t overload their vehicles. In case any goods which are supposed to be delivered in a state are not delivered and carried to the next state, the transporter in turn will be penalised heavily.

Over a period these code reading system can be improvised to read from a moving vehicle with scanners installed in strategic places or much better in the toll plazas. This will even eliminate the need for a person to get down and go to the machine to get the Bar/QR code read.

As our prime minister says, it is important we trust our sellers to provide the accurate info and if they are found to be erring, penalise them heavily, and if required cancel their licenses to carry on business.