New Delhi, Dec 5 (KNN) The task force committee set up to redraft the income tax law will focus on removing the ambiguities, rather than suggesting dramatic policy changes or tweaking of tax rates, said Akhilesh Ranjan, Committee Convenor and Central Bureau of Direct Taxes (CBDT) member.

For this, six members task force committee has been formed to redraft the 50 year old income tax law in more comprehensible way.

Ranjan said that the committee will meet shortly to draft a new legislation which will be more comprehensible and simpler, in order to give more tax certainty and reduce ambiguities.

Speaking at an international tax conference organized by Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), Ranjan said "Tax rate is prima-facie not the main focus area of this task force.”

He said there are clauses, provisos and explanations which have been added to the Income Tax Act, 1961 over time which need to be streamlined in simple language.

Ranjan further said that mere reduction in corporate tax cannot happen without implementing very strong anti-avoidance mechanisms.

Citing example of economies that have reduced corporate tax, such as European Union and the US, he said that tax rate must be decided by each country according to its own needs.

Besides, it has to be accompanied with strong steps on anti-avoidance just as the US has implemented Base Erosion and Anti-Abuse Tax (BEAT), he added.

Tax rates cannot be reduced by compromising on revenue collection, Ranjan said, adding that in order to maintain tax mop-up, tax base also has to increase.

Last week, CBDT, Finance Ministry's apex direct tax policy making body, named Ranjan as the new convenor of the task force for drafting new direct tax legislation.