The goods and services tax (GST) collection in Punjab reported a 31% year-on-year jump in August 2023 due to robust growth in business activities and increased monitoring to plug revenue leakages.
The GST revenue, including state goods and services tax (SGST) and integrated goods and services tax (IGST), in August, stood at ₹1,713.41 crore, up from ₹1,306.88 crore in the corresponding month of financial year 2022-23, according to the indirect tax data compiled by the state taxation department. The 31% year-on-year growth in collection in Punjab is remarkable as compared to the increase of 11% in the all-India goods and services tax revenue in the same month.
In the first five-month (April-August) period, the GST revenues are 28.20% higher this year than the collection during the same period last year, rising to ₹8,524.17 crore from ₹6,648.49 crore. Finance and taxation minister Harpal Singh Cheema said the GST collection, widely considered an indicator of economic activities, in the April-August period shows the department is on track to meet its revenue target set in the budget for the current fiscal.
“The tax compliance has improved after we enhanced monitoring and intensified checking to plug leakages, besides introducing the latest software and technological solutions to strengthen digital tax administration. With the festival season ahead, the growth should pick up further in the next few months,” he added. The finance minister has, in his budget estimates for FY 2023-24, pegged the goods and services collection at ₹23,000 crore, which is 26% more than the actual receipt of ₹18,128 crore last year. GST accounted for almost 44% of the state’s own tax revenue (OTR) last year.
{{/usCountry}}“The tax compliance has improved after we enhanced monitoring and intensified checking to plug leakages, besides introducing the latest software and technological solutions to strengthen digital tax administration. With the festival season ahead, the growth should pick up further in the next few months,” he added. The finance minister has, in his budget estimates for FY 2023-24, pegged the goods and services collection at ₹23,000 crore, which is 26% more than the actual receipt of ₹18,128 crore last year. GST accounted for almost 44% of the state’s own tax revenue (OTR) last year.
{{/usCountry}}The state excise, another major source of revenue, is also up 7.69% in the April-August period, increasing to ₹3,800 crore this year from ₹3,528.92 crore in the corresponding months of 2022-23. There was, however, a dip of 8% in year-on-year revenue in August, apparently due to floods in several districts of the state. The value-added tax (VAT) collection, on the other hand, reported a 15.63% year-on-year increase in August after a slow start initially. The increase is primarily on account of a hike in VAT by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh which, besides increasing collection, has also narrowed the gap in fuel rates in different states. Almost 90% of VAT revenue in the state government’s kitty comes from diesel and petrol, and the remaining 10% is from aviation turbine fuel and liquor.
‘Mera bill’ app data shows irregularities
Days after the state government launched a ‘mera bill’ app under the ‘bill liao inaam pao’ (bring a bill, get reward) scheme, random checking of 50 bills uploaded by consumers revealed irregularities by both registered and unregistered dealers. Of the 50 bills, 11 were issued by unregistered dealers. The remaining 39 had been issued by registered dealers. Of these, 33 of these were in order whereas six were not issued as per law. In one case, a dealer whose registration was cancelled in 2020 was issued bills. Cheema said the scheme announced the budget is aimed at increasing compliance under GST and thereby the revenue. Till Monday evening, more than 26,681 persons downloaded the app and 5,465 bills were uploaded by consumers, he said. The app was launched two weeks ago.