FY18 direct tax collection rises 19% owing to lower refunds, demonetisation

This could be attributed to lower refunds, to the tune of Rs 1.22 trillion, against Rs 1.34 trillion at this time a year before

Pushed by lower refunds and a demonetisation-backed higher base, direct taxes have come to the help of the government in its struggle to meet its fiscal deficit target for 2017-18.

Direct tax collection, net of refunds, has risen 18.7 per cent till Monday, against the 15.7 per cent projected in the Budget Estimates (BE). In absolute terms, the figure touched Rs 6.89 trillion, representing 70.3 per cent of the BE of Rs 9.8 trillion. Including refunds, gross direct tax collection rose 13.5 per cent to Rs 8.11 trillion.  

This could be attributed to lower refunds, to the tune of