Ganesh Kendale
NEW DELHI: GST collections rose 6.5% in Sept to Rs 1,73,240 crore, which was the slowest pace of expansion in over three years. This time, the slowdown appeared to be driven more by domestic sources, as Integrated GST, including on imports, logged an 8.8% rise in Sept (based on transactions in Aug). Central GST collections were pegged 5.4% higher at Rs 31,422 crore, while state GST mop-up was 4.3% higher, according to official data.
A part of the slowdown could have been on account of flooding in several parts of the country as strong monsoon disrupted normal life in several states.Andhra Pradesh, where several districts were ravaged by floods, for instance saw a 4% decline, Gujarat reported no change. Manipur logged the worst performance with a 33% contraction, with Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram and Nagaland also in the red. In contrast, Haryana (24%) and Delhi (20%) topped the growth charts.
Tax practitioners and industry are, however, banking on good festival sales on the back of a “normal” monsoon. “While GST revenues for the month may be a little underwhelming, considering the fact these collections relate to supplies in August, which is typically the beginning of the festive season buying spree, resulting in increased revenues. The GST revenues for the coming months of the festive season will be eagerly watched as they are also a proxy for economic growth… The tepid single digit growth in GST revenues in many of the large states should, hopefully, be corrected in the coming months,” said MS Mani, partner at Deloitte.
