Income tax officials able to use manual communication with assessee only in exceptional cases
All such documents will carry a unique computer-generated identification number (DIN) to maintain a proper paper trail. In its statement, CBDT clarified, "Any communication which is not in conformity with the prescribed guidelines shall be treated as invalid and shall be deemed to have never been issued."
The board clarified that income tax officials will still be able to use manual communication with assessee only in exceptional cases which will require a prior written approval of the concerned chief commissioner or director general of income tax. The CBDT has laid down timelines and clear procedures by which such manual communication will have to be regularized and intimated to the Principal Director General of Income-tax.