Officials will be held accountable for missing commercial tax targets: CM

 Bengaluru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has warned that officials failing to meet the commercial tax collection targets will be held accountable. He emphasized that tax collections must not fall short under any circumstances.

In a review meeting chaired by the Chief Minister, the progress of commercial tax collection was discussed. The state has set a target of Rs 1,10,000 crore for the financial year 2024-25. As of the end of October, Rs 58,773 crore has been collected, comprising GST Rs 44,783 crore, KST (Karnataka Sales Tax) Rs 13,193 crore and Professional Tax Rs 797 crore. The state has achieved 53.5% of the target so far. Compared to the same period last year, the collection has increased by Rs 5,957 crore.

To meet the yearly target by March, Rs 10,200 crore per month needs to be collected over the next five months. CM Siddaramaiah stressed the need for coordinated efforts, saying, “Achieving the target is essential for the state’s development.”

The Chief Minister announced that he would conduct monthly reviews and reiterated that any official not meeting the target will be held accountable. He also noted that the Kar Samadhana scheme is expected to bring in an additional Rs 2,000 crore.

Review of Excise department’s tax collection

Theexcise tax collection target for 2024-25 is Rs 38,525 crore. As of October 28, the department has collected Rs 20,237 crore, achieving 52.53% of the target. This year’s collections are Rs 1,301.15 crore higher than the same period last year.

The Chief Minister instructed the department to take strict measures to prevent illegal liquor smuggling from Goa and meet the March deadline for the target.He warned that any complaints of corruption within the department will be dealt with firmly.

Excise Minister RB Thimmapur, Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh, Additional Chief Secretary LK Atheeq, and other senior officials were present at the meeting.