Gujarat yet to receive Rs 9,136.26 cr in GST compensation from Centre

Gandhinagar: The state government of Gujarat has yet to recover Rs 9,136.26 crore in GST compensation from the Union government, said Finance Minister Kanubhai Desai in response to a question from Congress MLA Arjun Modhwadia in the state assembly.

During a discussion on the issue in the House, Modhwadia argued that Gujarat, being a manufacturing state, has been losing an average of Rs 15,000 crore every year since the implementation of the GST Act. Desai stated that Gujarat had claimed Rs 30,400 crore as GST compensation for 2021-22 and 2022-23, of which the Centre has paid Rs 21,264 crore, and a payment of Rs 9,136 crore is still pending.

The minister also informed the house that, the Centre has paid Rs 4,200 crore in cash and Rs 17,045 crore as a loan, with interest on the loan to be paid through the cess fund collected from various products such as tobacco, coal, and soft drinks. Due to a decline in business activity during the pandemic, the income from cess was not enough, so the Centre took a loan from the RBI and provided a loan to Gujarat for which the interest will be paid by the centre.

Desai defended the act, stating that all sources of income should be equally distributed for the development of the country. He also stated that the Centre has paid all due compensation to Gujarat for 2017-18, 2018-19, and 2019-20. DeshGujarat