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Jan revenue collection disappointing

JAVED MEHMOOD

ISLAMABAD: Tax revenue collection during January 2000 remains very disappointing, giving a strong indication of shortfall in tax receipts in 1999-2000, it was learnt.

The Central Board of Revenue (CBR) has collected only Rs 24.9 billion net revenue in January as against Rs 33 billion of the previous month. Revenue receipts for January are still being firmed up, but total net collection would not exceed Rs 26 billion mark, said sources.

Sources said that during the past few weeks the CBR was focusing much on the rightsizing and very little on the revenue collection as a result the tax receipts in January remain very poor.

By including Rs 24.9 billion provisional tax collection in January the overall revenue receipts amount to Rs 184.47 billion in seven months of the current fiscal year.

However, to meet the target of Rs 356 billion tax collection in 1999-2000 the CBR would have to collect Rs 171.53 billion in remaining five months with an average collection of Rs 34.306 billion each month that seems a difficult task keeping in view poor tax receipts last month.

During December 1999 the CBR raised Rs 6.7 billion income tax, Rs 10.3 billion sales tax, Rs 3.6 billion central excise duty (CED) and Rs 3.9 billion customs duty.

In January sales tax revenue depicted modest growth, marginal growth was witnessed in CED receipts while income tax and customs duty reflected negative growth compared with the same month of last fiscal.

Sources said that last year the target was low, at Rs 308 billion, but it is much higher, at Rs 356 billion, for the current fiscal and the CBR officials would have to make a hard struggle to achieve this target.

Delay in the levy of general sales tax (GST) at retail is also being mentioned another major reason of low tax revenue in January. The government projected the current fiscal's target in view of the enforcement of GST at retail stage, but it could not be levied yet due to a sudden change in political set-up, said the sources.