Will probe undisclosed foreign assets

Mysore/Mysuru: Dr. Kottangada Pemmaiah, an Indian Revenue Services (IRS) (Income Tax) officer from Kodagu, currently posted in Surat, Gujarat, as the Deputy Director (Investigation), has been additionally appointed as the Deputy Director of Foreign Asset Investigation Unit (FAIU) in Surat.

Dr. Pemmaiah will work in the FAIU that has been created by the Union Government in the countrywide investigation wings of the Income Tax Department for focussed probe in cases of undisclosed assets held by Indians abroad and possession of black money in foreign shores.

FAIUs have been recently created in all the 14 Investigation Directorates of the Income Tax Department located in various parts of the country that are primarily tasked to undertake raids and seizures, and develop intelligence to check tax evasion done by various methods.

Gujarat has created two such units, one in Ahmadabad and the other in Surat. Karnataka will have one. The FAIUs have been created as new wings within the various Investigation Directorates of the Income Tax Department to bring focus on cases of undisclosed assets held abroad by Indians and black money stashed abroad, Government sources said. 

The new units will also probe cases of Indian entities named in global tax document leaks like the Panama Papers. The FAIUs will be under the authority of the jurisdictional Director General of Income Tax (investigation) rank officer and its work will be directly monitored by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).

Dr. Pemmaiah is the son of Kottangada late Devaiah. His mother Viju Devaiah is a social worker and President of Cauvery Pommakkada Koota at Gonikoppal. Before getting into Civil Services, Dr. Pemmaiah was serving as Resident Medical Officer at Gonikoppal Community Health Centre.