KOCHI: Despite India’s goods and services tax (GST) collections surging 12.6 per cent year-on-year to an all-time high of Rs2.37 lakh crore in April, Kerala’s performance lagged significantly behind the national average, growing at just 5 per cent.
Kerala’s GST revenue rose from Rs13,172 crore in April 2024 to Rs13,831 crore this year – a sharp contrast to the 10.72 per cent average growth clocked by states.
In comparison, Maharashtra led the tally with Rs41,465 crore in collections (up 11 per cent), followed by Karnataka at Rs17,815 crore (12 per cent), Gujarat at Rs14,705 crore (12 per cent), Tamil Nadu at Rs13,831 crore (13 per cent), and Uttar Pradesh at Rs13,609 crore (11 per cent).
Nationwide, GST collections from domestic transactions climbed 10.7 per cent to around Rs1.9 lakh crore, while collections from imports surged 20.8 per cent to Rs46,913 crore.
Refunds issued in April rose 48.3 per cent to Rs27,341 crore.
Strong trend
The record-breaking mop-up in April follows a strong trend: GST collections were Rs2.10 lakh crore in April 2024 and Rs1.96 lakh crore in March 2025 – the second- and third-highest tallies since the indirect tax regime was rolled out on July 1, 2017.
February had seen collections of Rs1.84 lakh crore (up 9.1 per cent), while January matched March’s Rs1.96 lakh crore, up 12.3 per cent year-on-year.
December saw Rs1.77 lakh crore (up 7.3 per cent), slowing slightly from November’s 8.5 per cent growth due to post-festive moderation in consumption.
For FY26, the Union Budget projects an 11 per cent increase in GST revenue, targeting Rs11.78 lakh crore in collections, including Central GST and compensation cess.
