fixed and investment assets. A marked feature of corporate sector finances in recent years has been the reduction in the incidence of direct taxation. Until the mid-1980s, tax provision as a percentage of profits before tax in respect of public limited companies generally/ranged between 40 and 45 per cent. However, the CMIE study of 1,175 companies brings out that the ratio came per cent in 1991-92 and around 29 per cent