Read this before you visit your Chat wala he might be under IT radar

The Income Tax department officials have launched a crackdown on famous eateries hoarding big cash in the garb of running small businesses in Punjab. In a recent major recovery in its Patiala district, the Income Tax officials recovered an

undisclosed income of Rs 1.20 crore from a famous 'chaat wala'.

During the raid, the officials found out he had not paid income tax for the past two years. The I-T sleuths also conducted a discreet survey of his shop and took note of the customer footfall in a day and the overall expenses incurred by the owner. During the preliminary enquiry, the officials came to know about his real estate investments too, which were running into lakhs.

This chaat wala's businesses are not limited to only one particular shop. He also runs a booking centre in Sirhind area of Punjab, where he takes bulk orders, especially for weddings and big events, and supply 'chaat' to several areas of these districts, reported Hindustan Times.

This is the second incident in a month in which a small vendor has been caught hoarding unaccounted cash. In a similar incident on October 8, a 'pakoda wala', named Dev Raj, who runs two outlets of the Indian snack in Ludhiana, had submitted Rs 60 lakh as the annual tax liability after the I-T department sleuths conducted raids at his shops located at Gill Road and Model Town in Ludhiana.

Before conducting raids at his shop, the I-T officials had scrutinised all his financial records as well as his daily sales. On verifying it with his annual tax returns, the department officials asked the shop owner to submit Rs 60 with the department as an undisclosed income.

Small vendors running 'pakoda' business had become the talk of the town a few months back when PM Narendra Modi suggested selling 'pakodas' should be counted as employment. "If someone opens a 'pakoda' shop in front of your office, does that not count at employment? The person's daily earning of Rs 200 will never come into any books or accounts. The truth is massive people are being employed," he had said.