TDS Desk:

The government’s revenue collection fell 6% in the first half of fiscal year 2024-25 (FY25) from the same period the previous year, making it nearly impossible to meet the target for FY25.

Last year’s July-August uprising, and the subsequent economic as well as political uncertainty has contributed to the sharp fall in collection.

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) managed to collect Tk1.56 lakh crore in July-December 2024, down by Tk10,000 crore from July-December 2023. In July-December 2023, more than Tk1.65 lakh crore was collected.

The figures suggest NBR has collected only a third of what is required to meet the Tk4.8 lakh crore target for FY25 in the first half of the year. It is highly unlikely to collect the rest of the two-thirds in the second half of FY25, even though the collection rate has been picking up gradually since October.

Revenue collection was 6% higher in December 2024 compared with the figure in December 2023. This month, the government also hiked VAT and duties on over 90 products and services, but still the task of meeting the Tk4.8 lakh crore target remains highly challenging.