This indicates that the banks are en route to good profit growth.
According to official sources, the public sector banks on an average paid 25-30 per cent more taxes for the second quarter July-September of the fiscal 2003-04.
Sources said the largest of the lot, the State Bank of India, has paid around Rs 510 crore for this quarter as against Rs 453 crore paid for the corresponding quarter last fiscal.
Similarly, Bank of Baroda has paid almost around Rs 110 crore while Bank of India shelled out around Rs 95 crore.
Some of the big banks, in fact, have paid almost double the amount they filed last year.
Official sources added that while taxes paid by large public sector banks have gone up by 25-30 per cent, small banks including private and foreign banks paid almost 50 per cent more than what was paid by them last year.
Bankers said that the rise in taxes can be taken as an cue for better profits which the banks would have earned for the second quarter of the year.