Tirupati: Bhumi puja performed for GST building construction

Tirupati: Sanjay Kumar Agarwal, the Chairman of Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) performed bhumi puja for the construction of Central GST Commissionerate Building (GST Building), opposite to Prasara Bharathi building in the city on Thursday.

Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman and Secretary of Department of Revenue Sanjay Malhotra virtually participated in the bhumi puja and attended by Vivek Ranjan Zonal Member, CBIC; Sanjay Pant, Chief Commissioner CGST & Customs, Visakhapatnam Zone; Shishir Bansal, ADG, CPWD Hyderabad Region; and other senior officers of the department, State government and senior management of Trade and Industries.

In her address on the occasion, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman highlighted the need for facilitating taxpayers and announced that the approval for biometric-based Aadhaar authentication through GST Seva Kendras has been given for AP State. Tirupati Commissionerate has collected GST Revenue of Rs 8,264 crore last year and Rs 5,019 crore up to September 2023, she said adding that the Commissionerate has seen much progress in the recent past few years, posting an impressive growth of about 300 per cent in GST regime. The major contributor for this striking growth is from manufacture of passenger vehicles, cement, and automotive batteries.

The Union Minister lauded the performance of Sri City and said that the emerging industrial hub, with potential future growth, is expected to significantly contribute to the country’s GDP.

On infrastructure creation by CBIC, its chairman Agarwal stated that in the past five years, 54 proposals for construction of offices amounting to about Rs 2,200 crore has been sanctioned and 9 proposals for construction or revamping of residential quarters amounting to Rs 640 crore has been sanctioned. These are significant numbers and the CBIC is monitoring the projects closely for timely completion.

Emphasising on the need for a new GST Bhawan, Zonal Member Vivek Ranjan said revenue for CGST Tirupati Commissionerate has grown from the annualised figure of Rs 2,815 crore for the financial year of 2017-18 to Rs 8,275 crore during 2022-23, reflecting impressive increase of nearly three times and CAGR of 19.7%. Similarly, the taxpayer base has increased significantly from 22,400 (as on 31.10.2017) to 57,481 (as on 30.10.2023) during these six years registering an increase by 2.5 times or magnificent CAGR of 17%.

Tirupati Central GST Commissionerate, covering Tirupati and its surrounding regions, plays a vital role in facilitating economic activities and ensuring compliance. The construction of the office building of Tirupati CGST Commissionerate at an estimated cost of Rs 36.11 crore will be undertaken by CPWD and would be completed in 18 months.

During the event, Chairman CBIC and other dignitaries presented Chandrayan models to school students on behalf of the Union FinanceMinister.