Questionable tax collection in GH raises eyebrows

TURA, June 2: In another shocker, a non-employee of the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) Range Forest office in Phulbari was spotted collecting money from various vehicles passing through the forest gate for the past few months.
One Rejaul Islam alias Ranu, who was reportedly appointed as a muster roll worker sometime in 2012-14 by the then Executive Member of the district council, was seen collecting taxes from vehicles that brought forest produce through the gate.
A non-employee, Ranu’s collections have made a lot of people sit up and take notice with many questioning his presence within the compound for such activities despite there being others to take up tax collections from minor minerals.
Ranu had apparently provided help in the district council office for a few months but became a non-entity soon.
However, he once again appeared around the gates of the Phulbari GHADC office, allegedly collecting money from vehicles carrying minor minerals passing through the gate.
“There seems to be something else going on as he is not even authorised to collect taxes. He is not an employee of the GHADC as his presence is questionable,” said a Phulbari resident on condition of anonymity.
When questioned on the matter, the local ranger of Phulbari said that Ranu was appointed earlier by the EM but was unable to provide any further information on his appointment.