Preserving the People, Memories & Stories of Income Tax Madras
A place to remember the colleagues, friendships, experiences, and memories from the Income Tax Department, Government of India, in Madras (now Chennai), Tamil Nadu, India.
What began as coworkers became friendships that have lasted for decades. This page is a place to preserve those people, photographs, stories, and memories for today and for the generations that come after us.
The People Behind the Memories
These are the people who shared an important chapter of their lives at the Income Tax Department in Madras.
Many joined during the department’s early transition into computer-based work. They worked together, learned together, and built friendships that continued long after their years at the department ended.
Today, most of the group are retired, with many now enjoying time with their children and grandchildren.
Some of the people who were there in those early years eventually went on to become Income Tax Officers, Assessing Officers, and senior officials within the department.
This is their story. These are their memories.
Memories From the Years
A collection of photographs from the years these friends and colleagues spent together at the Income Tax Department in Madras.
[MORE PHOTOS COMING SOON]
WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
Income Tax Madras | Madras → Chennai
These friends and colleagues began this chapter of their lives in Madras, the city now known as Chennai, in Tamil Nadu, India.
The Income Tax Department was part of the Government of India, and these employees were working there during an important period of change – when computers were beginning to transform how the department worked.
Madras, Tamil Nadu, India
Country: India
Continent: Asia
THE EARLY COMPUTER YEARS
We Were There at the Beginning: The First Data Entry Team
During the early days of computerization, a small group of approximately eight or nine Data Entry Operators became part of the first generation working with computers at the Income Tax Department in Madras.
They worked with D-10A Uptron data-entry systems and were among the employees involved when the computer section was first introduced.
Sri Rangaswamy was one of them.
“We were the first batch — only about eight or nine of us. We were there when the computer section was first brought into the Income Tax Department.”
— Sri Rangaswamy
1989 — A New Generation of Data Entry
In 1989, D-20 AM systems were introduced, bringing together Data Entry Operators from different groups.
These early employees helped lay the groundwork for the department’s transition from traditional paperwork to computer-based operations.
Many of those who started in these early roles continued their careers with the Income Tax Department, eventually becoming Income Tax Officers, Assessing Officers (AOs), and senior officials.
The COBOL Days
As computerization began changing the workplace, employees also had to learn new skills.
One part of that history was COBOL programming.
Sri organized an MF COBOL programming class with NIIT in Madras, with the training paid for by the Income Tax Department.
He still has his original certificate from the program.
SRI’S CONNECTION
One of the Friends Who Helped Bring This Together
Sri Rangaswamy worked with the Income Tax Department from 1985 through 1994, beginning as a Lower Division Clerk before becoming part of the early Data Entry team.
After leaving the department, his career took him from India to the United States and eventually into technology, consulting, teaching, and community work.
Decades later, Sri wanted to create a place where his former colleagues could preserve their photographs, reconnect, and remember the years they shared.
And that’s how this page came to be.
A Message From Sri
“I worked with these friends and colleagues from 1985 to 1994. We were there during the early days when computers were first introduced into the Income Tax Department. We all started from different places, but we shared many years together. Today, most of us are retired and have families and grandchildren. I thought it would be nice to preserve our photographs, memories and friendships so they are not forgotten. This page is for all of us.”
Have Photos or Memories to Share?
Do you have an old photograph, story, certificate, or special memory from your years with Income Tax Madras?
We’d love to preserve it here. Click below to email Sri and share what you have.
