A robust tax collection in recent months has lent some credence to the notion that the expansion of the formal sector of the economy, which got a leg-up from demonetisation and the GST rollout, has gathered steam with the Covid-19 outbreak. Gross tax revenue in the first quarter of this fiscal shot up by an impressive 33% even over the same period in FY20 (before the pandemic struck). In stark contrast, nominal GDP in the June quarter grew only 2.4% from the pre-pandemic level.