Top 100 firms' advance tax payout drops 1.4%

Advance tax collection from the country’s top 100 companies, according to the final numbers, declined by 1.4 per cent to Rs 30,763 crore in the third quarter of 2011-12, indicating sluggishness in the economy.

These corporate houses had paid Rs 31,203 crore in the same period last year.

“Some of the largest corporates, including State Bank of India, paid less advance tax in the third quarter against the year-ago period. Besides, oil marketing companies did not pay any tax either in the second quarter or the third quarter,” a finance ministry official said.

The dip in the advance tax collections from the 100 big corporates is in sync with the drop in industrial output in the recent months.

Growth in factory output measured on the Index of Industrial Production is slowing and dipped 5.1 per cent in October.

While the gross domestic produce numbers of the third quarter are awaited, the economic growth had slowed to 6.9 per cent in July-September period against 8.4 per cent year-on-year. Amid slowing economy, the revenue collection target of Rs 9.32 lakh crore (including Rs 5.32 lakh crore from direct taxes) for the year is looking difficult.

The government on Tuesday said it had asked the tax authorities to make concerted efforts to achieve the revenue targets.