CHANDIGARH: Punjab Finance, Planning, Excise and Taxation Minister Advocate Harpal Singh Cheema on Tuesday announced that the state has achieved a significant fiscal milestone in the financial year 2025-26, driven by a 16.03% surge in GST collections amounting to Rs 17, 860.09 crore and a robust Excise revenue collection of Rs 7, 401 crore up to November 2025. Attributing this success to a harmonious framework of innovation and vigilance, the Finance Minister highlighted that the Excise and Taxation department has not only surpassed previous benchmarks but also successfully implemented the One-Time Settlement (OTS) Scheme-2025 and advanced data analytics to dismantle tax evasion.
Reviewing the sectoral performance, the Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections grew by Rs 2, 467.30 crore over the corresponding period of the previous year, reflecting the state’s focus on economic recovery and improved taxpayer compliance. He said that even after the GST 2.0 rate rationalisation in September 2025, which reduced taxes on essential items from 12% to 5%, the department's targeted initiatives kept cash tax collections steady. Simultaneously, the Value Added Tax (VAT) and Central Sales Tax (CST) collections reached Rs 5, 451.76 crore, marking a 3.35% increase compared to the prior year.
“The Excise Commissionerate has also displayed exceptional performance under the Excise Policy 2025-26, which set an ambitious annual collection target of Rs 11, 020 crore. By November 2025, the department has already registered an 8.64% increase in excise revenue over the same period last year”, said the Finance Minister while adding that this follows the record-breaking performance of the previous financial year 2024-25, where revenue grew by 16.36% to reach Rs 10, 723 crore. The Finance Minister also emphasized that enforcement remains a priority, with 3, 860 FIRs lodged and 3, 795 arrests made this year to curb liquor smuggling and illicit distillation.