37 percent rise in indirect tax collection in April-June: Jaitley

New Delhi, Aug 5:

India’s indirect tax receipts grew 37 percent in the first quarter, ended June, over the like period of last year, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley told parliament on Wednesday.

“Indirect taxes in the first quarter (April-June) have risen by a phenomenal 37 percent,” Jaitley said while requesting the Lok sabha to pass the government’s demands for supplementary grants.

The situation had created a “revenue buoyancy” permitting more capital expenditure and investment in infrastructure, the minister said.

“The first quarter capital expenditure increased by 17.6 percent. Because of our revenue measures, we have been able to allocate an additional Rs.70,000 crore this year for investment in infrastructure,” Jaitley said.

The indirect tax revenues grew 37.5 percent to nearly Rs.154,000 crore in the first quarter of the current fiscal on the back of a significant rise in excise collections.

The collections on this count in the year-ago period were Rs.112,000 crore, the finance ministry said last month.

The first quarter indirect tax collection figures appear to give some indication of “green shoots” of economic revival, Jaitley added. (IANS)