Topic Of The Day:-“GST Buoyancy”
With Collections Hitting A Record High, The Next Step Should Be To Simplify The Tax Regime
The final month of financial year 2018-19 has given the government some reason for cheer. Targets for indirect tax collections may have been missed for the last year, but collections from the Goods and Services Tax in April for economic activity in March scaled a new high. The GST inflows of ₹1,13,865 crore in April are the highest recorded since the tax regime was introduced in July 2017. They represent an increase of over 10% compared to the same month a year ago, and over 15% buoyancy over the average monthly GST collections in 2018-19 of ₹98,114 crore. To be clear, GST revenues have crossed the ₹1 lakh crore mark in March, January and October as well. The government has acknowledged that economic growth did slowdown in 2018-19, owing to declining private consumption growth, a tepid increase in fixed investments and muted exports. The hope would be that the latest GST numbers are a harbinger of better growth momentum for 2019-20. The growth rate of the economy fell from 8.2% in the first quarter to 7.1% in the second and 6.6% in the third, so any improvement in the final quarter numbers due at the end of May should provide some succour. Healthier GST collections, if sustained, will also mean less pressure on the Centre to cover its fiscal deficit.
The April GST numbers have come as a surprise to many experts, given the lacklustre economic activity witnessed across many sectors in recent months, which should normally have impacted tax collections adversely. This perplexing trend may be attributed to increasing compliance among businesses amidst the aggressive push by the tax authorities to widen the tax base. GST filings, for instance, were the highest in March this year. However, the April surge has occurred despite a decrease in the total number of GSTR-3B returns filed by businesses, from 75.95 lakh in March to 72.13 lakh in April. In the absence of more disaggregated data, it could be argued that tax rate cuts by the GST Council in December too may have spurred higher volumes for some goods and services. The rush to pay tax arrears at the end of the financial year may have been another seasonal factor contributing to better tax collection during the last month. Enforcement action by the taxman to collect more revenue from registered taxpayers who have not been filing returns could be yet another factor. It is still too early to assume that this is the beginning of a secular trend. One must not lose sight of the need for further simplification of the GST regime once the election season is over. A significant number of businesses have already been brought into the tax net since the advent of the GST. In order to encourage greater compliance, there must be efforts to make it easier for small firms to remain in the tax net by cutting down the time and energy required to fill myriad tax returns. A nudge would be preferable to the stick.
VOCABULARY
- Indirect
Meaning: not directly caused by or resulting from something.
Synonyms: Incidental, accidental, unintended, secondary, subordinate
Antonyms: Direct
Example Sentence: “full employment would have an indirect effect on wage levels”
- Scaled
Meaning: weigh a specified weight.
Example Sentence: “some men scaled less than ninety pounds”
- Regime
Meaning: a system or ordered way of doing things / a government, especially an authoritarian one.
Synonyms: System, Arrangement, Scheme, Code
Example Sentence: “detention centres with a very tough physical regime”
- Buoyancy
Meaning: a high level of activity in an economy or stock market / the ability or tendency of something to float in water or other fluid.
Synonyms: vigour, strength, high level of activity, burgeoning
Antonyms: depression
Example Sentence: “there is renewed buoyancy in the demand for steel”
- Owing
Meaning: have an obligation to pay or repay (something, especially money) in return for something received.
Synonyms: be in debt (to), be indebted (to), be in arrears (to)
Antonyms: settle up
Example Sentence: “they have denied they owe money to the company”
- Consumption
Meaning: the action of using up a resource.
Synonyms: using up, use, utilization, expending, expenditure
Antonyms: Building, Development
Example Sentence: “industrialized countries should reduce their energy consumption”
- Tepid
Meaning: (especially of a liquid) only slightly warm; lukewarm / showing little enthusiasm.
Synonyms: unenthusiastic, apathetic, half-hearted, lukewarm, warmish
Antonyms: enthusiastic, passionate
Example Sentence: “the applause was tepid”
- Harbinger
Meaning: a person or thing that announces or signals the approach of another /
Synonyms: herald, sign, indicator, indication
Example Sentence: “witch hazels are the harbingers of spring”
- Sustained
Meaning: bear (the weight of an object) without breaking or falling
Synonyms: Bear, support, carry, stand, keep up
Antonyms: collapse under
Example Sentence: “he sagged against her so that she could barely sustain his weight”
- Succour
Meaning: assistance and support in times of hardship and distress.
Synonyms: aid, help, a helping hand, assistance
Antonyms: Blockage, Hurt
Example Sentence: “the wounded had little chance of succour”
- Lacklusture
Meaning: lacking in vitality, force, or conviction; uninspired or uninspiring / (of the hair or the eyes) not shining; dull.
Synonyms: uninspired, uninspiring, unimaginative, dull, humdrum
Antonyms: inspired, brilliant
Example Sentence: “no excuses were made for the team’s lacklustre performance”
- Adversely
Meaning: in a way that prevents success or development; harmfully or unfavourably.
Example Sentence: “his self-confidence was adversely affected for years to come”
- Perplex
Meaning: completely baffling; very puzzling.
Synonyms: puzzle, baffle, mystify, bemuse, bewilder
Antonyms: Aid, Clarify
Example Sentence: “she was perplexed by her husband’s moodiness”
- Aggressive
Meaning: ready or likely to attack or confront; characterized by or resulting from aggression.
Synonyms: hostile, belligerent, bellicose, antagonistic, truculent
Antonyms: meek, friendly, peaceful
Example Sentence: “he’s very uncooperative and aggressive”
15. compliance
Meaning: the action or fact of complying with a wish or command.
Synonyms: Agreement
Antonyms: Defiance
Example Sentence:”the ways in which the state maintains order and compliance”
