Signalling both a spurt in inflation and economic recovery from Covid blues, the total collection of Goods and Services Tax (GST) in Gujarat touched Rs 1.1 lakh crore in 2022, up 17 percent against 2021. This is for the first time that the annual tax mop-up has crossed the Rs 1 lakh crore-mark. According to the data released by the Union finance ministry, the state’s GST mop-up stood at Rs 9,238 crore in December 2022, up 26 percent against 2021.
Industry players attribute the rise in the tax mop-up to improved economic and commercial activities in addition to inflation. Moreover, a change in GST rates on certain commodities, and the overall improvement in consumption drove the surge in tax collection. The recovery was seen especially in the tourism and hospitality sectors, which were among the worst-affected industries since the Covid-19 outbreak.
In fact, in April 2022, Gujarat saw record-high GST collection of Rs 11,264 crore. Through most part of the year, the overall tax mop-up has remained above the Rs 9,000 crore-mark. The automobile industry also clocked high growth and at the same time, textile and FMCG sectors also saw an increase in the prices of several products. Therefore, the effective tax collection increased.
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