Punjab expands tax prize scheme to boost public participation

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The North News
Chandigarh, October 18

The Punjab government has announced major upgrades to its flagship ‘Bill Liyao Inaam Pao’ initiative, introducing a quarterly bumper draw with substantial cash prizes to strengthen citizen engagement in tax compliance.

Harpal Singh Cheema, Punjab’s Finance, Planning, Excise and Taxation Minister, said participants will now have the chance to win ₹1 lakh for the first prize, ₹50,000 for the second, and ₹25,000 for the third in every quarter. A new upload option for service sector bills—covering restaurants, salons and boutiques—will be rolled out on the Mera Bill app to make participation smoother.

The app will also add Punjabi language support and feature a real-time chatbot to assist users.

Between April and August 2025, over 30,000 bills were uploaded, producing 1,263 winners and distributing ₹78.13 lakh in prize money. The Taxation Department has imposed penalties totalling ₹9.07 crore and recovered ₹7.31 crore after verifying uploaded bills.

The scheme, launched in September 2023 by Bhagwant Singh Mann, encourages consumers to upload bills to combat tax evasion. It excludes petroleum products, liquor, out-of-state purchases, and business-to-business transactions. Only bills from the previous month qualify for the draw.

Cheema urged citizens to embrace the programme, calling it a tool for “transparent and inclusive governance” aimed at building a more accountable Punjab.