ABCs of Filing E-returns of Income Tax

I guess I am one among very few people who have successfully filed E-returns this year. So what all do you need to do the same. Here is the complete procedure:

1. Register yourself with your PAN No. at http://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/portal/index.jsp .
2. After logging in to the Portal download the appropriate IT Return Form (a PDF form filling application) based on the category you belong to (mentioned in the Portal). For Salaried people with no Capital Gains it is ITR-1 & for Salaried people with Capital Gains, Income/Loss (Home Loan) from House Property it is ITR-2.
3. Complete the form after thoroughly going through the instruction sheet given at the last. Form filling is quite simple provide you know to interpret the different categories of the Form 16 provided by your company.
4. After completing your form, cilck on the "Check Form" button given in the last page. This verifies whether you have completed the form with the basic data.
5. Now click on "Generate Bar Code" to have the Bar Code electronically inserted into your form.
6. For uploading the form you need to generate its XML file by clicking on "Export To XML" button. There is a small clarification which is not provided by the Income Tax Portal. The Portal does not upload XML files where addresses contain special characters. After lot of R&D I found out that only Hyphen (-) was accepted. So remove all Commas (,), Slashes (/), Full Stops (.) & Quotation Marks (' ") from the address field.
7. Now you are all set to filing E-returns. Just upload the XML file generated through the link https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/portal/uploadXML.jsp .
8. If you have a Digital Signature issued by any Certifying Authority then there is no other physical form submission required. In India MTNL Trustline is one of the certifying authorities. But I guess getting a Digital Signature is quite expensive. Its somethign between Rs.900 - Rs.2000 for a period of 2 years.
9. If you don't have a Digital Signature, don't worry. After successful uploading of the XML file, an ITR-V file is generated. Take 2 printouts of this form, sign on them, submit 1 copy at the nearest IT office & get acknowledgement on the other. You might be thinking then what is the difference between physical hard-copy returning filing & this procedure, the main advantage with E-returns is that you have an E-filing Acknoledgement Number with which you can track your process in case of any queries.

Isn't it simple. Believe me its really very simple, provided you take little bit of interest in your financial side & also believe in using the latest technology offerings.

This day last year (7/11)

I was working at my Clients' Dadar office when I received a call from the Datacentre related to some problems with our Internet Proxy Server at around 16:00 hrs. Me & my colleague rushed to the Datacentre at Lower Parel & switched over to our redundant Server. We then started diagnosing & fixing the problems in the Server. It was around 19:00 hrs when we heard many people shouting loudly in the Office Cafeteria, which was besides our Server Room.

When we went out & looked into the TV screens, we realised that something horrible was happenning in the Mumbai suburban local trains. Within a span of 10-15 mins we saw all news channels updating of 6-7 bomb blasts on the Western Railway local trains. As soon as I tried to call my house, I found that all phone lines were busy. Finally I managed to get connected to my dad's cell & informed him that I'm safe. He also gave me another surprising news, that he was out & my mom had mistakenly locked our door when she was in the staircase without realising that she was without the keys. The only way out was to reach my Sisters' place, which was closeby, & where the duplicate keys of my house were avaialble. Moreoever we had shifted to our new flat at Kandivali just 4-5 days back & we didn't know much about our neighbours. So I was instructed to return to my Sisters' place.

It was 19:30. Me & my friend immediately left Office & started heading for our respective homes with no idea about what was in offering for us. My friend headed towards Mulund & I headed towards Kandivali. I walked for a Mile & a half towards Dadar & finally found a Tempo where everyone around was boarding. I also joined the crowd without knowing where the Tempo was heading towards.

As the Tempo started picking up speed I learnt that it was heading towards Vile Parle. The Tempo passed besides Mahim station where we could see Police, Ambulances & large amount of Media people present as it was the most powerful of all blasts. Slowly & steadily we reach Santacruz by around 21:30 hrs. I then got down on the Highway & started requesting for lifts from passer-bys. Suddenly I found a BEST Bus with its board flashing BORIVALI. I immediately boarded the Bus & later realised that the Bus trip was cut short & it would terminate its route at Andheri itself. I had to again get down at Andheri & wait for someone to give me lift upto Kandivali.

Finally a very helpful gentlemen, working as a Manager in GE, asked me & few others to get into his Santro Car with AC switched-on. Ahhh!!!!! what a relieve. We finally started settling down in his comfortable car. He also offered us Biscuits & I still remember how much I enjoyed them after remaining hungry for almost 3-4 hrs in the horrific Tempo travel. On our way we found many people offering Parle-G Biscuits on junction points. Hats off to the spirit of Mumbai !!!!!

I finally reached near Thakur Complex (on the Western Express Highway) by around 23:15, from where I walked upto Kandivali Railway Station & crossed over to the West. I then finally found a rickshaw & headed towards my home. On my way I also dropped another person who was accompanying me in the Car. I reached my Sisters' place by around 23:45, picked up my Mom & Dad & finally reached home at 00:00 hrs.

That was the end of 7/11, a day I would never every forget in my life.

Ez maintenance of your Kitchen Exhaust Fan

• Eat a lot of rich, oily food ?


• Don't have the budget to go for an Electric Chimney ?


• Kitchen Exhaust Fan maintenance becoming a headache ?

Don't worry !!!!! Here are a few simpler ways to make the maintenance a little bit easier:

1. In the first instance detach your Exhaust Fan. Before detaching it notice the places where the Exhaust Fan becomes extremely dirty.


2. Dismantle it completely & dip the plastic parts (not the motor) into a hot water solution with soap.


3. Once your cleaning & drying is complete your actual work starts. Pickup your old newspaper & cut pieces of different shapes to cover up places where your Exhaust Fan used to get most dirty.


4. Cover the flaps facing the exit with a single role of newspaper & some ahesive tape.


5. Remember the sizes you have cut so that you can make & keep some in spare for future use.


6. Now mount your Exhaust Fan once again

Thats it !!!!! Whenever you find your Exhaust Fan to appear very dirty, just replace the newspaper roles. Isn't that simple. I personally use this methodology & am benefiting from the same.