The booming economy just made the tax collector a very happy man. The Income Tax (I-T) Department's Mumbai Circle notched up collections of Rs 44,293 crore till December 15 this financial year — a whopping 58.7 per cent rise from the Rs 27,908 crore netted in the same period last year.
Chief Commissioner of I-T (Mumbai) K Venkataramani, while acknowledging "that the economic growth rate of 9.1 per cent played a major role in the rise", also pointed out the more efficient enforcement of tax collection measures, like surveys and inspections, by his department.
The department collected Rs 148.65 crore from 125 surveys conducted from April 1 till November-end, he pointed out.
Venkataramani also revealed that "banking, oil, engineering and construction were the sectors that had performed the best".
The collections so far mean that the Mumbai Circle's target of Rs 69,000 crore for this financial year will be easily achieved. Last year, the department had fallen short of its target of Rs 57,000 crore by Rs 4,000 crore.
A senior I-T officer, who declined to be named, said that the jump in collections also outpaces the growth at the national level. The all-India tax collection went up by 42 per cent to touch Rs 1 lakh crore till November-end. Moreover, the collections in Mumbai account for 44 per cent of the all-India take-in.
Tax compliance is rising too. Till November-end, the Mumbai Circle had received 16.35 lakh I-T returns as compared to 15.91 lakh in the same period last year. The I-T Department is looking to reward the increased compliance by issuing refunds within four months of the last date of filing returns.
{{/usCountry}}Tax compliance is rising too. Till November-end, the Mumbai Circle had received 16.35 lakh I-T returns as compared to 15.91 lakh in the same period last year. The I-T Department is looking to reward the increased compliance by issuing refunds within four months of the last date of filing returns.
{{/usCountry}}Till November-end, 1.5 lakh refunds were issued, a marginal rise from the 1.3 lakh in the same period last year.
A statement issued by Venkataramani also showed a huge jump in corporate tax collections, which touched Rs 28,976 crore, a rise of Rs 12,376 crore from the same period last year in Mumbai.
Email Manish Pachouly: manish.pachouly@hindustantimes.com