The direct tax collection target has been revised downwards to Rs 11.80 lakh crore in the Union budget after making a “realistic assessment” of various economic factors, a top government official said.

The set target for revenue collection (personal income tax, corporate tax and others) was Rs 13.35 lakh crore for the 2019-20 financial year that ends on March 31.

“Those (earlier) estimates have been revised in the budget and our new target would be about Rs 11.80 lakh crore which I am pretty confident that we will achieve it,” CBDT chairman P. C. Mody said in a post budget interview.

On the reasons for the recalibration of the target, Mody said, “It was just a realistic assessment of what is achievable and also it has to be taken into account that we have had a lot of revenue forgone.”

The revenue foregone is essentially on two accounts — huge refunds issued and cut in corporate tax.

On the new personal income tax regime, the CBDT chairman said the aim of the government was to “give benefit of lower taxes to both corporates and individuals”.

This starts from a basic government policy to phase out deductions and exemptions, he said.

Mody said it was thought by the government that when the money is in the hands of taxpayers, they will be better judge as to what tax saving instrument would they like to put their money in rather than “induced saving” which may not fetch them the required rate of return.