New Delhi: India’s gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) collection hit a record high of Rs 2.10 lakh crore in April, a 12.4 percent increase over the same month last year, according to data released by the Ministry of Finance Wednesday.
According to tax analysts, the record-high revenue has been driven by states like Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, and Delhi, as well asstringency on the part of tax officials in ensuring compliance and curbing fake invoicing.
The government said the rise in the collection can be attributed to robust growth in both domestic collections — which grew by 13.4 percent over last April — and in collections from imports, which grew by 8.3 percent.
The collection in April 2024 was the highest since the GST tax regime was introduced in July 2017. After accounting for refunds, net GST revenue for April 2024 was Rs 1.92 lakh crore, up 17.1 percent from April last year.
“The unprecedented milestone of surpassing Rs 2 lakh crore in GST collection for April 2024 underscores the steadfast resilience of the tax system amidst evolving economic landscapes,” said Saurabh Agarwal, tax partner at EY India.
“Every component of the GST collection has contributed significantly,” he added. “The Central GST, State GST, Integrated GST, and cess segments have all demonstrated positive performance, further solidifying our fiscal position.”
The breakdown for April 2024 revealed that the Central GST collection stood at Rs 43,846 crore, State GST at Rs 53,538 crore, and Integrated GST at Rs 99,623 crore. The cess collected by the government was Rs 13,260 crore.
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North shows high growth
Maharashtra topped the list for collections with Rs 37,671 crore (13 percent increase over last April), followed by Karnataka with Rs 15,978 crore (9 percent growth) and Gujarat with Rs 13,301 crore (13 percent growth).
However, the data revealed that several large states, especially in north India, saw faster growth in GST collection. Delhi and Bihar, for example, each had a 23 percent increase from last April. Punjab and Haryana grew 21 percent.
“The all-time high GST collection in April 2024 has come on the back of strong growth in GST collections from northern states like UP, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi etc,” said Gunjan Prabhakaran, partner & leader, indirect tax, BDO India.
She added, however, that the GST collection tends to be higher than usual in April since it reflects the activity of March, which is the last month of the financial year.
Another reason for the rising GST collection, according to Agrawal, was the push by GST officials to ensure higher compliance.
“The concerted effort of GST officials including zero tolerance for non-filers, coupled with rigorous measures to combat fake invoicing and the registrations, has significantly bolstered GST collection to the states’ coffers,” Agrawal noted.
(Edited by Tikli Basu)
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