INDORE: The investigation wing of the state commercial tax department caught two dealers of Malwa Mills for tax evasion in an operation that was initiated on Wednesday and concluded on Friday.A team of commercial tax officials conducted a search at Goodluck Gems, Rudraksh and Monika Steel Furniture at Malwa Mills. The department had received complaints about these firms conducting business through informal receipts.An official from the department said, "A total penalty amount of Rs 17 lakh has been slapped on both firms for evading taxes."Firms are expected to submit the penalty through e-challans by Saturday, according to the department.The investigation team sealed important documents related to records, books and bills during the search. The sealed documents will be studied by the department for further details.During the investigation, the team had found that both firms were selling goods through informal receipts to evade tax.The investigation team also found a mismatch in records of goods stored in godowns and what was recorded in the bill books.The commercial tax department has intensified raids and searches in the past few months.In 2016-2017, the state commercial tax department collected Rs 242.85 crore, up 27.11 per cent from a year ago from raids, surveys and vehicle checks.The department conducted raids on 614 dealers in 2016-2017 and on 541 dealers a year ago.

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