May 24, 2003	Saturday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 21,1424

ISLAMABAD, May 23: The tax authorities collected Rs352.1 billion during 10 months of the current financial year against the target of Rs348.4 billion, showing an increase of 1.06 per cent.

The Central Board of Revenue official spokesman Vakil Ahmed Khan told reporters here on Friday that the revenue collection during the July-April 2002-03 period registered an increase of 15 per cent to Rs352.1 billion against Rs306.1 billion collected over the same period last fiscal.

Mr vakil, however, said that the revenue under the head of direct taxes was short of target by 2.31 per cent during the period under review to Rs109.5 billion against the target of Rs112.1 billion.

The CBR spokesman defended the shortfall, which he said occurred due to low collection of income tax by the newly-established Large Taxpayers Unit at Karachi and abolishing of withholding taxes last year.

He said that it was only the customs duty that registered a growth viz-a-viz target, while the collection from sales tax and central excise also remained short of target during the period under review.

Further tax-wise break-up showed that the tax authorities collected Rs154.1 billion under the head of sales tax during the July-April period against the target of Rs156.3, showing a decline of 1.4 per cent.

The collection under the head of central excise duty (CED) stood at Rs35.5 billion against the target of Rs37.3 billion, showing a decline of 4.82 per cent. The tax authorities collected Rs53 billion under the head of customs duty against the target of Rs42.9 billion, showing an increase of 16.55 per cent.