Successful implementation of e-governance in VAT administration would help prevent tax evasion besides checking corruption and Bihar government was trying its use in tax administration to make it more developed and viable, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister S K Modi said on Friday.

Modi was speaking at the inauguration of a workshop on 'e-governance in VAT administration' jointly organised here by International Finance Corporation (World Bank Group) and the state commercial taxes department.

The workshop was attended by senior officials of commercial tax departments of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Odisha and Kerala, besides Bihar.

He said only 37 traders had done e-filing when e-governance was implemented by the NDA government in Bihar in 2007. "Now the number of traders submitting e-payment and e-returns have increased to about 7,000."

"We are still trying to make e-governance in tax administration more viable and developed," he said urged traders and officials to change their mindset.

"We will be able to implement e-governance in tax administration thoroughly in Bihar by March 2012," he added."

Modi said e-governance has become a thrust area of the NDA government in Bihar and it has been made compulsory for traders in the state who pay taxes of Rs one lakh and above to file e-returns.

If they fail to do so they would not receive form c for inter-state trade.

"Initially, we had e-payment system facilities through SBI, but now now traders can make e-payment through PNB as well. We are trying to rope in Bank of India, Bank of Baroda and Central Bank of India," he said.

Modi said Bihar government had requested RBI to make available e-payment facilities for traders at all nationalised commercial banks.

It was necessary to have fully developed infrastructure for e-governance for successful execution of goods and service tax, he said and hoped that a better server would be developed in Bihar for ensuring e-governance.

International Finance Corporation (World Bank) Tax expert Rajul Awasthi, state commercial taxes department principal secretary R Punhani, his Gujarat counterpart Vinod Advani, Odisha official P K Patra and Sahdeo Sahu, Murukesh Sarkar (Kerala) and Vikas Kumakarni (Maharashtra) also spoke at the programme.