With increased focus on revenue generation from service tax, officials have detected several cases of tax evasion amounting to about Rs 8,000 crore during 2013-14 fiscal which ended last month.

Finance Ministry officials said service tax was being evaded by a number of small and big service providers across the country through non-filing of mandatory returns, wrongful declaration of amounts collected by them and other means.

The Directorate General of Central Excise Intelligence (DGCEI) had registered 1,144 cases of service tax evasion during 2013-14. The amount involving the cases of service tax evasion was 7,928.22 crore during the period, they said.

The service tax detection amount of about 8,000 crore does not include cases registered at various service tax and excise commissionerates and other allied offices across the country, the officials said.

"Service tax has been an focus area for the government. A number of service tax evasion cases has been registered across the country during the last fiscal," a Finance Ministry official said.

The DGCEI had detected 841 service tax evasion cases involving government's revenue of Rs 4,693 crore in 2012-13. The Directorate had realised Rs 880 crore from these cases, they said.