The Central Board of Direct Taxation (CBDT) on Friday reported the direct tax collections up to February 2017 to witness steady growth trend.

"The collection net of refunds stands at Rs. 6.17 lakh crore which is 10.7 percent more than the net collections for the corresponding period last year. This collection is 72.9 percent of the total Budget Estimates for Direct Taxes for Financial Year 2016-17," CBDT notified in a statement.

It added that the growth rates for Corporate Income Tax (CIT) and Personal Income Tax (PIT), in terms of gross revenue collections, showcased growth with rate under CIT being 11.9 percent while that under PIT (including STT) is 20.8 percent.

However, after adjusting for refunds, the net growth in CIT collections is 2.6 per cent while that in PIT collections is 19.5 per cent.

Refunds amounting to Rs.1.48 lakh crore have been issued during April 2016- February 2017, which is 40.2 per cent higher than the refunds issued during the corresponding period last year.