Direct taxes Rs 1,00,000 cr short of budget estimate

NEW DELHI: With barely two months remaining for the current fiscal to end, the direct tax collection is more than Rs 1,00,000 crore short of budget estimate but the government is hopeful of meeting the target despite economic slowdown affecting personal and corporate income.

"In the direct tax collection, there is a gap of more than Rs 1,00,000 crore and we are hopeful of reaching the budget estimate," CBDT Chairman S S N Moorthy told reporters on the sidelines of a book launch. He said the tax collection till February 1 stood at Rs 2,47,000 crore, while the budget estimate was Rs 3,65,000 crore.

There was a growth of 12.5 per cent, while the growth target was 20 per cent, which the government will try to achieve.