‘Rs 460b revenue target likely to be achieved’

ISLAMABAD: Spokesman of Central Board of Revenue (CBR) Vakil Ahmed Khan said on Friday that government hopes to achieve tax target of Rs 460.4 billion set for the current financial year.

Speaking in a PTV programme, he said in the first seven months of the fiscal year Rs 271.5 billion have been collected by CBR against Rs 234 billion in the corresponding period of the previous year.

He said presently increase in tax collection is around 15.6 percent while the rate required to get the set target is only 14 percent.

Giving further details regarding collection of taxes, he said, Rs 82.954 billion were collected from direct taxes while Rs 122.456 billion from sales tax, Rs 27.173 billion from central excise duty and Rs.38.9 billion through customs duty.

Around 58 percent increase was registered in customs duty while in sales tax it is nearly 33 percent, he added.

The CBR spokesman said the increase in taxes show the fact that the economy is picking up and moving in the right direction.

To a question, he said growth in direct taxes is not upto the expectations but it is encouraging as compared to previous years.

When asked whether tax culture has changed in the country he said tax culture cannot be changed within a year or two, however people have realised their responsibility to pay taxes. —APP

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