The Income Tax Department on Tuesday, June 7, said software services provider Infosys has been directed to look into the issue relating to malfunction of search option on the e-filing portal. After many users complained of issues while accessing the I-T portal and reported that it was hacked on Tuesday, which also happens to be the first launch anniversary of the portal, the department said Infosys is resolving the issue on priority.
“Issue relating to the search functionality of the e-filing website has come to our notice. The Income Tax Department is seized of the matter. @Infosys has been directed to look into it & @Infosys has confirmed that they are resolving the issue on priority,” the I-T department tweeted.
The finance ministry officials also assured that there has been no data breach on the portal. Incidentally, Tuesday is the first anniversary of the launch of new Income Tax portal.
In the past year, the portal functioning was marred on several occasions which prompted the government to extend due date of filing tax returns and related forms for all taxpayers. The new e-filing portal www.incometax.gov.in, launched on June 7, 2021, had a bumpy start since the beginning with taxpayers and professionals reporting glitches and difficulties in its functioning. Infosys was in 2019 given the contract to develop the portal.
Due to the glitches in the portal, the deadline to file income tax returns had been extended to December 31, 2021.
Infosys had been paid a total of Rs 164.5 crore till June 2021 under the project, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary had said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha. After the new portal was launched, taxpayers, tax professionals and other stakeholders reported glitches in the functioning of the new portal, including slowness of the portal, non-availability of certain functionalities or technical issues in functionalities.
With PTI inputs