Revenue department to brief PMO on Rs 1.67-trillion tax shortfall

Despite a cut in the income tax collection target in the full Budget compared to the interim Budget projections, the target is far from realistic

The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) is understood to have asked revenue department officials to brief it on how it plans to achieve this year’s tax collection target, given the Rs 1.67-trillion shortfall between the last fiscal year’s Revised Estimates and provisional actuals.

For the financial year 2019-20 (FY20), Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has projected tax revenue (direct plus indirect taxes), after devolution to states, at Rs 17.05 trillion, an achievable 14.8 per cent increase over the FY19 Revised Estimates. However, it is a staggering 29.5 per cent rise over last year’s provisional actuals of Rs 13.17 trillion.

It is understood