Festive buying drives GST mop-up to second-highest level

New Delhi: Gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections surged 22.9 per cent year-on-year to Rs 2.31 lakh crore in October, registering the second-highest monthly mop-up on record, as festive-season buying boosted consumption and economic activity.

October marked the second consecutive month in which GST collections crossed Rs 2 lakh crore. The latest mop-up was next only to the record Rs 2.43 lakh crore collected in April. The 22.9 per cent growth was also the fastest recorded during the current financial year.

Collections from domestic transactions increased 16 per cent to over Rs 1.59 lakh crore, while revenues from imports jumped 42 per cent to Rs 72,246 crore. The October mop-up included Central GST of Rs 42,935 crore, State GST of Rs 51,340 crore and Integrated GST of over Rs 1.37 lakh crore. GST refunds rose 6.5 per cent to Rs 27,934 crore. After adjusting for refunds, net collections increased 26 per cent to over Rs 2.03 lakh crore. During April-October, gross GST collections grew 13.2 per cent to over Rs 14.77 lakh crore, while net revenues rose 13 per cent to Rs 12.69 lakh crore.

Grant Thornton Bharat Partner Manoj Mishra said the collections reflected the festive-season demand cycle, with higher consumer spending, retail activity and movement of goods across sectors. EY India’s Saurabh Agarwal attributed the performance to resilient economic activity and improving compliance, adding that festive demand could sustain the momentum in the coming months.

Deloitte Partner Mahesh Jaising said revenue buoyancy despite rate reductions was giving the GST Council confidence to pursue further reforms. He said the reform agenda was increasingly focused on simplification, faster refunds, smoother input tax credit flows and reducing compliance-related difficulties.

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