GST collections for the month of May have dropped to the lowest in eight months as the second wave of Covid-19 ravaged the Indian economy.
The gross GST revenue collected in the month of May 2021 is Rs 1,02,709 crore of which CGST is Rs 17,592 crore, SGST is Rs 22,653, IGST is Rs 53,199 crore and cess is Rs 9,265 crore, the government statement said.
While the collections have stayed over the one lakh mark for eight months in a row, the latest collections show almost a 30% drop since April 2021. GST collections hit a record of Rs 1.41 lakh crores in April.
Sources tell ET Now that GST collections are likely to fall further in June before seeing a recovery in July amidst the reopening of major activities in states following the drop in daily infections.
Sustaining the downward slope, daily Covid infections stood at 1.2 lakh on Saturday, the lowest in 58 days while the daily positivity rate has dipped to 5.78% across the country.
The second wave of Covid-19 led to higher infections and mortality than the first wave but experts believe the impact on the economy could be limited.
The revenues for the month of May 2021 are 65% higher than the GST revenues in the same month last year.
The gross GST revenue figures include the GST collection from domestic transactions till June 4, 2021, since taxpayers were provided various relief measures in the form of waiver or reduction in interest on delayed return filing for 15 days for filing month May 2021, amid the second COVID-19 curve.
