Odisha records highest ever GST in April despite Covid induced slowdown

In 2020-21, Odisha had recorded a growth of nearly 20% in overall revenue collection over the previous year.

Published on: May 4, 2021, 15:28:16 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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Despite the economic slowdown due to Covid-19 pandemic, Odisha recorded the highest ever GST collection of ₹3,849.48 crore in April this year as against ₹2,955.60 crore collected during April 2019 and ₹774.29 crore collected during April 2020.

The increased collection of GST is important for Odisha in a pandemic year as the state is looking at more expenditure on health than was budgeted for 2021-22 .

Odisha also collected its highest ever SGST (State GST) of ₹1126.67 crore as against ₹927.60 crore in April 2019 and Rs. 360.36 crore in April 2020.

The sharp rise in GST collection during April this year is a result of better compliance, increased collection from iron and steel sector as well as collection from matured GST demand made by tax officers after return scrutiny, said commissioner of commercial tax, SK Lohani.

“The Commercial Tax and GST organization of the Odisha government has been focusing on increasing the tax-base of GST with regular survey and registration,” he said.

In 2020-21, Odisha had recorded a growth of nearly 20% in overall revenue collection over the previous year. Total revenue collection from various own tax and non-tax sectors during 2020-21 financial year is estimated at ₹56, 363 crore against ₹46,970 crore collected in 2019-20 financial year.

The increased collection of GST is important for Odisha in a pandemic year as the state is looking at more expenditure on health than was budgeted for 2021-22 due to the second wave of Covid-19. With daily cases likely to touch around 15,000 by May second week, the state government estimates it may have to spend far more than the ₹9,164 crore it had budgeted.

Last month, Odisha chief secretary fixed a target of ₹40,000 crore as tax collection from own sectors like stamp duty and registration fees, sales tax, state GST and excise duty apart from another ₹21,500 crore from non-tax sectors like mining, water tax and forest tax for the 2021-22 financial year.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Debabrata Mohanty
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.Read More

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