For those who brave the treacle-like Bangalore traffic, the board outside the tax office near Chinnaswamy cricket stadium offers a chuckle as it says “TDS isn’t Tedious” in a dark maroon font. While it can be argued that it isn’t tedious, thanks to simplifications since its introduction in 2004 (or due to Stockholm Syndrome, as one chartered accountant wryly put it), it has slowly become excessive on various sections of businesses, especially professionals and services companies. The Tax Deducted at Source, or TDS, framework was introduced as a “pay as you earn” mechanism to help taxpayers clear their tax dues as they earn funds instead of having to grapple with a large payment in one shot.