Revenue windfall for Telangana

​Hyderabad:  Steep growth in tax collections, revenues from after hike in liquor and fuel prices in May this year has come as a major relief for the Telangana government, which is struggling hard to meet the financial needs post the launch of Rythu Bandhu and Farmer Insurance Scheme. The two schemes have put additional burden on state exchequer of the order of a staggering Rs 14,000 crore.

State Excise Department registered 27.14 per cent growth and Commercial Taxes department reported 16.48 per cent growth in tax collections. The T State has earned Rs 800 crore more in May when compared to the corresponding month last year. Officials said increased beer prices and skyrocketing prices of petrol and diesel prices helped fill the coffers with more money.  

According to the official figures, the total revenue generated from liquor sales was Rs 1,938 crore as against Rs 1,524 crore earned in May last year.  The increase of beer price which came into effect in May third week and the huge sale of chilled beverage in the hot summer generated more than Rs 400 crore.  

“The growth in revenues from liquor sales is phenomenal in May this year.  Government is expecting the same trend to continue in the coming months also,” a senior official of state Commercial Taxes department said. 

Similarly, constant hike in fuel prices and streamlining  tax collections under single tax structure- GST (Goods and Service Tax) in the second month of 2018-19 financial year rescued the state from financial stress. The total tax collections from VAT on petro products and the GST was Rs 3,381 crore in the last month.  It was only Rs 2,903 crore in the corresponding month last year.  

With the increase of petro prices, government has got Rs 100 crore additional revenue in a month from Rs 716 crore (May 2017) to Rs 817 crore (May 2018).  

The efforts put in by the state commercial taxes department in coordination with the central implementing agency in the implementation of the GST brought many traders under tax payers net. A sum of Rs 806.84 crore has been collected under SGST (State GST) and Rs 896.17 crore has been received as IGST (Integrated GST).  

The officials said that government plugged all loopholes in the evasion of taxes by traders particularly those who filed returns but did not pay the tax amount previously.  Officials said that the Commercial taxes department will continue its drive to collect pending tax amount from the registered traders on GST portal all through the year.  

Buoyed by the impressive growth in state revenues, Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao instructed the Excise and Commercial taxes departments to sustain the growth in revenues to meet the exigencies in the entire financial year.