Winning Bizness Desk

India’s Net Direct Tax Collections Climb to Rs 5.21-lakh-cr till June 17

India’s net direct tax collections climbed up sharply in the first few months of this fiscal (FY 27). This is a strong indication of steady economic activity and healthy tax compliance across businesses and individuals.

According to data from the Income Tax Department, net direct tax collections after refunds reached Rs 5.21-lakh-crore between April 1 and June 17 of this year, a growth of 14.64 per cent as compared to the same period last year.

Corporate tax collections remained the biggest contributor to the increase. Net corporate tax collections stood at Rs 2.08-lakh-crore during the period, marking a Year-on-Year (YoY) increase of 22.4 per cent.

Net non-corporate tax collections, which include personal income tax came in at Rs 2.93-lakh-crore, up 8.4 per cent from the corresponding period of FY 26.

The gross direct tax collections before adjusting refunds stood at Rs 6.10-lakh-crore, a jump of 12.46 per cent from a year-ago.

Refunds issued during the period amounted to Rs 89,025-crore as against the Rs 89,979-crore refunded in the same period of the last fiscal (FY 26).

Advance tax collections also registered a healthy growth. The total advance tax collections had climbed up to Rs 1.78-lakh-crore as of June 17, up 15.3 per cent Year-on-Year.

Advance tax paid by companies jumped 16 per cent to Rs 1.41-lakh-crore, while collections from non-corporate tax-payers increased 12.7 per cent to Rs 37,620-crore.

The collections from Securities Transactions Tax (STT) were also robust, reflecting a strong momentum. STT receipts zoomed to Rs 18,856-crore from Rs 13,013-crore in the year-ago period, registering an impressive growth of nearly 45 per cent.

The point to highlight here is that the latest figures suggest robust tax buoyancy in the opening months of FY 27, supported by strong corporate earnings, sustained economic activity and continued participation in capital markets.

If Monsoon Deficient, Then Sharp Fall in Pulses, Soybean Output Likely

If on account of El Nino, there is a deficient monsoon this season, then there could be a big slide Year-on-Year in the output of pulses and oilseeds in 2026-27. This would primarily be in the case of tur and soybean.

El Nino is a climate pattern involving the abnormal warming of surface waters in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, disrupting global weather and often suppressing the Indian monsoon.

Here, it is important to point out that in 2015 (when El Nino struck the last time), there was a sharp fall in the output of pulses, rice and oilseeds as compared to 2013 when there was s six per cent surplus rainfall.

Rice, pulses and oilseeds registered a slide in production of two per cent, 17 per cent and 29 per cent, respectively, in 2015 from the levels of 2013. It is to be noted that 2014 too was a rainfall deficient year, with rainfall being 12 per cent below normal.

Tur production in 2015 was around 30 per cent lower than 2013 while soybeans output was lesser by a big 40 per cent.

In the 2025-26 crop year, tur production was 3.59-million tonnes as compared to 3.62-million tonnes in 2024-25, as per the agriculture ministry’s third advance estimate.

Soybean production was 12.6-million tonnes in 2025-26 as against 15.27-million tonnes in 2024-25. Both 2024 and 2025 registered excess rainfall at around eight per cent above normal.

An important point to note here is that this year (2026-27), because of the effects of El Nino, output of these two crops could decline steeply by around 50-to-60 per cent on a YoY basis, as per initial estimates.

However, crop failure due to deficient rains may not be much as farmers could plan their sowing better and could even shift to alternative crops, due to early forecasts. Much will depend on the farmers’ ability to shift to alternative crops and short duration crops, thus reducing their losses and limiting the damage to the agricultural sector.

Kunal Shah to Lead WhatsApp Globally

CRED Founder Mr Kunal Shah has been appointed the new head of WhatsApp. He takes over from Mr Will Cathcart who has led the platform in the last seven-years.

Meta Platforms will be investing USD 900-million (around Rs 8,500-crore) in CRED as a part of the start-up’s Series H Funding Round.

Under the terms of the agreement, Meta will acquire a minority stake of around 20 per cent in CRED. The investment values the company at Rs 43,239-crore or around USD 4.5-billion, on a post-money basis.

The funding is a combination of primary and secondary share purchases.

Mr Shah will step down as CEO of CRED and join Meta’s global leadership team. He will take over from Mr Cathcart who moves into a new role focussed on Artificial Intelligence (AI) initiatives.

According to Meta, Mr Shah would be responsible for leading WhatsApp through its next stage of growth, with an emphasis on building of revenue through advertising and subscription products, as well as integrating AI agents into the platform.

Mr Miten Sampat has been named interim CEO at CRED with immediate effect. He has been overseeing strategy and finance at the company since 2020.

CRED said that its Board and leadership team are working on a permanent management structure as the company prepares for an eventual stock-market listing.

It said that it presently has 1.7-crore monthly active members and handles in excess of 40 per cent of the country’s credit card bill payments.

Its lending business has reached Rs 24,000-crore in assets under management for partner financial institutions. CRED has reported an annual revenue of around Rs 3,200-crore and said that it has turned profitable.

Assam Emerges as Country’s Third-Largest Rubber Producer

The north-eastern state of Assam is rapidly emerging as a leading player in the country’s rubber sector with nearly 50,000-hectares under cultivation and a growing share in the country’s natural rubber output.

At a press conference held recently in Guwahati, the rubber Board Executive Director Mr M Vasanthagesan said that the state presently ranks third in national rubber production after Kerala and Tripura, another north-eastern state.

According to him, Assam has become a key contributor to the expansion of rubber cultivation in the north-east, a region that now accounts for around 1.8-lakh hectares of rubber plantations.

“The focus is not only on increasing the area under cultivation but also improving productivity to meet the rising domestic demand for natural rubber,” Mr Vasanthagesan said.

The senior Rubber Board official also highlighted the progress of the INROAD Project, a Rubber Board initiative funded by the Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association (ATMA), which seeks to expand rubber plantations across the north-east and West Bengal.

Plantations have already been established over 1.79-lakh hectares as against a target of developing two-lakh hectares between 2021-26, benefiting in excess of 2.07-lakh growers.