Slowdown impact: Customs, excise realisation decline

Hit by slowdown and reduction of duty on petroleum goods, customs and central excise collection declined during September.

While the customs duty collection realisation during the month declined by 10.9 per cent to Rs 10,126 crore (Rs 101.26 billion), central excise realisation dropped marginally by 0.3 per cent to Rs 11,417 crore (Rs 114.17 billion), Finance Ministry data show.

The only saving grace in indirect tax collection during the month was 29.6 per cent rise in service tax realisation.

The service tax collection during September was Rs 6,967 crore (Rs 69.67 billion) as against Rs 5,374 crore (Rs 53.74 billion) in the same period last fiscal.

Total indirect tax collection in September was Rs 28,510 crore (Rs 285.1 billion), up 1.2 per cent.

The government in June slashed customs and excise duties on crude oil and products sacrificing Rs 49,000 crore (Rs 490 billion) of annual revenue.

The move was aimed at giving some relief to people from hike in prices of diesel, cooking gas and kerosene.

As far as first six months of the current fiscal (April-September) is concerned, the total indirect tax collection works out to be Rs 1.69 lakh crore (Rs 1.69 trillion), up 20.8 per cent from what was mopped up in corresponding period last fiscal.

The data shows that customs collection during the six- month period was Rs 73,247 crore (Rs 732.47 billion), up 20 per cent.

Similarly, the central excise collection was up 14 per cent at Rs 58,964 crore (Rs 589.64 billion) and service tax realisation 35.6 per cent at Rs 36,459 crore (Rs 364.59 billion).

The impact of the slowdown on revenue collection is being felt towards the later part of the first half of 2011-12.

The industrial production growth rate during July moderated to 21-month low of 3.3 per cent.