Equalisation levy posts 35% growth; overall tax collection remains muted

Direct tax, net of refunds, contracted by 24 per cent as of October 8 to Rs 3.66 trillion compared with Rs 4.8 trillion in the corresponding period last year.

The collection of equalisation levy, or the so-called Google tax, picked up this financial year, posting 35 per cent growth, even as the overall direct tax mop-up remains muted with a double-digit decline.

The digital levy, aimed to tax non-resident e-commerce operators, gathered Rs 738 crore after the second-quarter instalment deadline against Rs 545 crore collected in the same period last year, suggesting that most large players fell in line after initial resistance.

While the levy applied only to digital advertising services till last year at the rate of 6 per cent, the government this year widened the scope to impose a