Speaking on the occasion of the celebration of the successful five years of GST administration in the nation, Shri. Baswaraj Nalegave, Commissioner of Central GST, Belagavi, hailed the role of Industry and Tax administration for the success of the historical change in tax administration by the introduction of GST and also its stellar and seamless success in the last five years.
The function was organized by Central Tax, Belagavi Executive, Audit and Appeals Commissionerates at KLE Centenary Convention Hall to commemorate the five years of GST. Taxpayers who have shown exceptional growth, progress and compliance were honoured with commendation certificates. Similarly, officers of Central GST were also honored for their exceptional service and contribution to the success of GST.
In a significant step towards strengthening cordiality between various Government organisations, Maj. Gen. Paramdeep Singh Bajwa, Commander of JL Wing, Infantry School, Belagavi, was invited as Chief Guest. Speaking on the occasion he hailed the tax reforms and stated that the department is providing economic security to the nation and both the Army tax administrators are working for the nation-building.
JSW is the largest tax payer in the region. Their Senior Executive Vice President & Group Head, (Taxation), Shri Vineet Agrawal, delivered a key note address. He stated that the introduction of GST is a landmark reform in taxation in the country. He said that the rollout of GST was a challenging task and that it has brought about change of mind set in the taxpayer, involvement of technology in the tax administration and simplification of tax compliance. He also stated that the tax reform is in its infancy and certain issues yet to be addressed.
Prof (Dr) Vivek Arvind Saoji, Vice Chancellor, KLE University of Higher Studies and Research, Belagavi also spoke on the occasion and commended the transformation of taxation regime by the implementation of GST.
Shri. Rohan Javali, Chairman of Chamber of Commerce, Belagavi, Shri. Nitin Nimbalkar, Chairman of Chartered Accountants Association, Belagavi also spoke on the occasion and lauded the efforts of the department in implementing the tax reforms.
The Belagavi Central GST Commissionerate, covers the largest jurisdiction of 12 districts of North Karnataka. Presiding over the function, Shri Baswaraj Nalegave, Commissioner Central Tax, Belagavi, announced that the occasion was earmarked to recognize women achievers from fields like Environment, sports, Entrepreneurship, Empowerment of Women etc for their exceptional contribution.
Among the women achievers, six of them were chosen by a select committee. Smt Soniya Netalkar Bishnoi, Chief Marketing and Business Development Officer, Netalkar Power Transmission, Belagavi, and Smt Deepali Gotadke, WebDreams, Hubballi were among the women honoured in the category of Entrepreneurship, Smt Arati Bhandare, Amulya Boondh Foundation, Belagavi, was honoured for her contribution in water conservation, plastic recycling, composting and such other environmental causes. Smt Nagrathna Sunil Ramagouda, Founder of Ashraya Foundation – a home for adolescent HIV positive girls – was also honoured in the category of NGO for women empowerment. Ms. Seema Anandrao Pawar from Belagavi and Ms Komal from Toranagallu, two exceptional sports persons also found recognition for their achievements in the sports of Hockey and wrestling respectively.
Shri Baswaraj Nalegave, Commissioner Central Tax, Belagavi, presiding over the function, acknowledged the overall role of various representatives of Trade and industry, CA association, TRP association in support of successful implementation GST. He stated that during its journey of half a decade, GST law has evolved and mitigated several issues faced by the taxpayers through proactive steps. He assured the taxpayers that their grievances with regard to compliance of tax laws will be looked in to and will be resolved at the earliest. He also emphasised the importance of the e-invoicing which will reduce the litigation. He also elaborated the scheme of rewards with regard to the information given regarding evasion of tax and which leads to recovery of revenue. Similarly, a scheme of reward is also in vogue for information which leads to the recovery of revenue from the defaulters. He expressed his gratitude to senior Government functionaries and other dignitaries who graced the function inspite of their hectic schedule. He announced that the occasion is a platform to interact with various stake holders of the trade and industry and also declared that the Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue, Central Board of Indirect Taxes announced the theme of “GST@5: Saadhan, Desh ke Sarvangeen Vikas Ka“ on the completion of five years of introduction of GST. He disclosed that during the financial year 2021-22, GST collection saw new heights as a sign of robust economic growth.
The record collection is an indication of vibrant and robust economic activity in the districts of Belagavi, Dharwad, Gadag, Koppal, Vijayanagara, Bellary, Raichur, Yadgir, Gulbarga, Bidar, Vijayapura and Bagalkot, which covers the jurisdiction of Belagavi CGST Commissionerate. In all 2,30,566 taxpayers are registered under GST in these districts, and these are administered by either the State or the Central GST authorities. The Commissionerate’s revenue for 2019-20 was Rs.7,677 Crore, for 2020-21 it was Rs.7,124 Crore and for the year 2021-22 it is Rs.10,172 Crore which is 43% more than previous years collection. Major industries of Steel, Cement, Mining, Sugar such as JSW Steel, Kesoram Industries, Orient Cement, NMDC etc. are operating in the jurisdiction of this Commissionerate. Besides a huge number of traders have also contributed to the record GST collection. He stated that during the fiscal year, the Belagavi GST Commissionerate took up various steps to facilitate taxpayer compliance like extensive interaction with members of the trade bodies, listening to problems, issuing directions and resolving them, facilitating trade and industry, ensuring timely availability of working capital by expeditious sanctioning of eligible GST refunds. As part of the nation’s Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav, Taxpayer facilitation centres were created at GST Bhavan, Club Road, Belagavi and also at Divisional offices to assist trade and industry.
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