New Delhi: The indirect tax collection target of Rs 3.93 lakh crore will be met in the current fiscal despite moderation in economic growth, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said Wednesday.
"I am confident that the department (Central Board of Excise and Customs) would not spare any effort in meeting the indirect tax collection target. In fact, already indications are there," Mukherjee said while speaking at a ceremony to hand over Presidential Awards to custom and excise officials.
He said that despite challenges on the fiscal front, indirect tax collections have been good this fiscal so far.
"As we approach the end of current fiscal year, there are certain fiscal challenges that have to be addressed. The indirect tax collection figure up to January 2012 indicates that there has been some gains over the last year," Mukherjee said.
Total collection of indirect taxes in the first 10 months of the current fiscal was Rs 3.17 lakh crore against Rs 2.75 lakh crore in the April-January period of last fiscal, an increase of 15 percent.
The government has fixed a target of Rs 3.93 lakh crore for indirect tax collection during 2011-12.
As per Advanced Estimates, the economy is expected to grow at 6.9 percent in the current fiscal, lower from 8.4 percent in the previous year.
Highlighting the importance of Goods and Services Tax (GST), the Finance Minister said, "once implemented GST will bring about a paradigm shift in the arena of the indirect tax system of the country."
Under the GST regime, uniform taxes would be levied by the Union government and the state governments through a common system of tax collection, Mukherjee said.
GST is expected to be a more efficient system of taxation and is likely to give a boost to tax revenues of the Centre and states, he said.
"We are working with the state government for early implementation of GST," he said.
Towards this end, he said, an IT network called GSTN is being created to ensure integration of the tax system of the Centre and the states.
Speaking at the event, Finance Secretary R S Gujral also exuded confidence that the CBEC would meet the target and may cross indirect tax revenue collection of Rs 4 lakh crore during this fiscal.
He also said that the cadre review of indirect tax officials are expected to be over in a months time.
"The cadre review proposal is at the very advance stage. With the very active interest and intervention of the Finance Minister, I do hope that it should go through within a month,"
Gujral said.
Taking note of significant contribution made by indirect tax in national exchequer, Mukherjee said, the Central Excise revenue has more than doubled over the last 10 years from Rs 68,282 crore in 2000-01 to Rs 1,37,427 crore in 2010-11.
"This accounts for 40 percent of the total revenue from Indirect Taxes. I am told that in the current financial year, the collections from Central Excise up to January, 2012 stand at Rs 1,17,730 crore, out of total indirect tax collection of Rs 3,17,233 crore," he said.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, February 22, 2012, 19:28