Date:12/04/2006 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/04/12/stories/2006041201891400.htm

Back TN commercial tax collections surpass target

Our Bureau

Chennai , April 11

Buoyed by a general economic growth, Tamil Nadu's commercial taxes — Sales Tax and its share of Central Sales Tax — grew by nearly a fifth during 2005-06 over the previous year, surpassing the internal target for the year.

According to sources, the State collected Rs 16,615 crore during the year as Commercial taxes, against Rs 13,907 crore in the previous year. The target for 2005-06 was Rs 16,599 crore.

This growth in tax revenue is attributed to the buoyancy in the economy with General Sales Tax growing by 19 per cent and Central Sales Tax by 20 per cent, according to the sources.

The sources point out that this growth has come about even when the State has not raised taxes or levied new taxes for the last two years. Tax collections have been growing at between 15 per cent and 20 per cent since 2001-02, when it grew by just about 3 per cent, according to the sources.

General sales tax

During 2005-06, General Sales Tax contributed Rs 13,657 crore and CST Rs 1,799 crore.

Revenues from registration (of properties and other documents) too has grown by more than 20 per cent — from Rs 1,900 crore in 2004-05 to Rs 2,300 crore in 2005-06. The number of documents registered increased to 20 lakh from 17 lakh. This increase too has come about when guideline values for properties have not been revised for the last two years.

The general norm for guideline values is to increase it by 10 per cent annually, but the Government is now studying some anomalies in the system — the difference between guideline value and market value, with one being higher than the other in some areas — through committees headed by district collectors before it can think of revising guideline values, the sources said.