Income Tax Day 2022: Date, History & Significance

The Income Tax department will be celebrating the 162nd Income Tax Day or Aaykar Diwas on 24 July 2022. This day has been celebrated in India since 2010.

It was in the year 2010 that the IT department decided to observe July 24 as the day for the annual celebration, marking 150 years of the levy, from that year onwards.

Income tax was first levied as a duty in the year 1860 and the authority to levy I-T came into force on July 24 of the same year. That is why 24 July holds such importance for the Income Tax department.

Let's have a look look at the history and significance of Income Tax Day 2022.

Income Tax Day 2022: History  

It was on 24 July 1860 that the concept of income tax was introduced in India. It was introduced by Sir James Wilson to compensate the British government for the losses incurred during the First War of Independence in 1857.

The week before the Income Tax Day or what we refer to as the Aaykar Diwas, various activities are undertaken by the regional offices of the I-T department across the country.

The regional or national level offices organise various outreach programmes every year across the country to promote the payment of taxes as a value norm and to sensitise potential taxpayers that payment of taxes was an ethical duty of all citizens.

Income Tax Day 2022: Significance 

Income Tax Day is celebrated to appreciate the I-T department for its immense service to the nation. The agency administers Direct Taxes and acts as a source of revenue for the government.

It is also an effective instrument for achieving certain socio-economic objectives. The agency has proved to be robust and capable of evolving to the need of the times.

The department adapts itself to the emergent changes in our economy and achieves a healthy growth in tax collections. It plays a twin role as the revenue-earning arm of the nation and provider of taxpayer services.