Goa is due Rs 250cr from Centre in GST dues: Minister

Panaji, April 5 (IANS) Goa is due around Rs 250 crore from the Centre in form of its Goods and Service Tax (GST) share, the state's representative on the GST Council and Transport Minister Mauvin Godinho said on Tuesday.

Godinho, who was re-appointed to the Council on Tuesday, also said that repeated requests from small states like Goa had resulted in the GST council giving first preference when it came to devolution of tax revenue shares as compared to bigger states, whose share runs into thousands of crore.

"Rs 250 crore is pending but we will get it in due time," Godinho told reporters on Tuesday.

Godinho also said that during the pandemic, the Central government had been unable to pay compensation to states during the pandemic, because collection itself was low on account of lack of transactions on luxury and sin goods.

"During the pandemic, collection was extremely low. As a result uptil five years, June 22, the Centre pays compensation cess (to states). The cess is collected from sin goods and luxury goods. That cess is paid back to the state as a compensation for what you have lost after implementing GST. After five years, you are expected to stand on your own feet. There was a shortfall in that payment," Godinho said.

"There was a gap wherein the Centre was not able to pay because the collection never took place. When the pandemic was there everybody was locked inside their homes. What consumption can take place, whether luxury goods or otherwise. Obviously there was no money with the government," Godinho said, adding that the Centre had then taken loans for itself as well as states in order to pay the compensation.

Godinho also said that there was growing realisation in the Council to provide preferential treatment to smaller states like Goa, as compared to bigger states.

"In the case of bigger states, it (dues) are thousands and thousands of crores. My point is do not make the small states suffer. They have limited options of taxation. They have limited opportunity to have money accruing to their state kitty. So please help them. And slowly this is sinking into them that they have to give special treatment (to small states)," he said.