Karnataka's GST collection jumps 16.5% this festive season from last year

With a collection of Rs 6,786.43 crore in the same period, the collection of Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST) has also gone up by 29.15%, indicating an increase in interstate transactions and movement of goods between states.

The State Commercial Taxes Department has recorded a SGST collection of Rs 6,089.89 crore between October 1 and November 30, the festive shopping season.

The data showed that the collection has increased by nearly 16.5 per cent as compared to the same period last year, indicating a return to shopping spree post-Covid.

With a collection of Rs 6,786.43 crore in the same period, the collection of Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST) has also gone up by 29.15 per cent, indicating an increase in interstate transactions and movement of goods between states.

According to sources, home appliances, electronic goods, gold, and apparel were the most sought-after items during the festive season.

“Since many showrooms usually put up discounts and offer EMI options during the festival season, the sale of electronic goods and home appliances is high during the season. We did see a huge crowd during the season,” said Prakash K, who runs a well-known franchise of electronic goods in Rajajinagar.

The jewellery industry has also seen a healthy growth compared to last year, said Vinod Hayagriv, director of C Krishniah Chetty Group.

“Though the sales were slow in the beginning of the festive season, it picked up eventually and the overall sales for the festive season was very good,” he said, adding that they saw a huge demand for diamond jewellery.

Vehicle sales and business at restaurants and eateries went up during the festive season, industry experts said.

While the business was dull during the Covid years, it has picked up significantly since the last two years, traders said. However, they could not draw a clear comparison owing to the change in shopping trends and other factors on the ground.

“A number of factors have changed since Covid and we cannot talk with just the sales figures since we will have to consider inflation and changing shopping patterns on the ground,” Hayagriv said.

While business was high, traders in Bengaluru also opined that infrastructure woes made it difficult for traders to reap high benefits.

“In many areas, like Gandhi Bazaar and Avenue Road, the road works are going on and this has affected the footfall. Better infrastructure would help traders attract more customers,” said Sajjan Raj Mehta, a trade activist.

The Commercial Taxes Department has a revenue collection target of Rs 1.01 lakh crore for 2023-24 and so far, the department has collected close to Rs 62,400 crore. Apart from the hike in shopping during the festive season, the department has also improved revenue collection through the enforcement drives, the officials said.

“The GST collections have been encouraging. While the shopping during the festive season has increased the revenue, enforcement drives have also helped us improve the revenue,” said Shikha C, Commissioner, Commercial Taxes.