Revenue plunges even as economic activity resumes

HARYANA STORY Govt was expecting to garner ₹1,982 crore in May, but has managed to collect only ₹675 crore in first 2 weeks

CHANDIGARH:: The Haryana government is struggling to mop up revenue receipts after the resumption of economic activity post-April 20 relaxations outside the containment zones.

Hamstrung by the Covid-19 lockdown, the cash-strapped state government was expecting to garner a measly Rs 1,982 crore in May. However, it managed to collect only Rs 675 crore in the first two weeks, about 34% of the total estimated revenue for the month. Indications are that the revenue in May will fall well short of the target, finance officials said. Revenue earnings in May 2019 were about Rs 6,575 crore and were expected to be around Rs 7,200 crore this May, officials said.

In the changed economic scenario, the state government is relying heavily on market borrowings by auction of state government securities to raise resources for running its day-today affairs. Chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who also holds the finance portfolio, on Thursday said they had borrowed Rs 5,000 crore in April and Rs 2,000 crore in May to tide over the fiscal crisis. The state government spends anything between Rs 6,200 to Rs 7,500 crore every month on payment of salaries, pensions of retired employees, social security pensions, wages to contractual employees, rural electrification and domestic subsidy besides payment of interests and debts. A senior finance department official said the government in the first two weeks of May has earned Rs 357 crore from the GST, Rs 94 crore as excise (liquor sale) revenue, Rs 58 crore from stamp duty and registration fee, and Rs 18 crore from taxes on vehicles.

The revenue collection in April was about Rs 2,415 crore while the revenue expenditure was about Rs 6,943 crore, statistics reveal.

Taxation officials said the revenue from GST has started streaming in but still is way below the revenue earned in the corresponding period last year.

The GST collections between May 1 and 12 were Rs 340 crore as compared to Rs 1,200 crore in May 2019. The revenue from liquor sale which started from May was Rs 94 crore till May 14 as compared to Rs 184 crore earned between May 1 and May 12, 2019.

The revenue from the levy of stamp duty and registration fee was Rs 64.52 crore in the last 17 working days. The income from stamp duty and registration fee collections have improved after May 6 with the registration of 900 to 1,200 documents daily now on account of increase in working hours of tehsils and sub-tehsils.

The state government is also pinning hopes on the disbursement of Rs 1,337 crore GST compensation by the Centre. A cess is levied by the central government for providing compensation to the states for the loss of revenue arising on account of implementation of the GST. The compensation cess is a levy collected on supply of select goods and/or services and will remain a levy till July 2022.