Chandigarh, Feb 18 (IANS): Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema on Tuesday said the Excise and Taxation Department has conducted targeted GST registration drives to broaden the tax base, resulting in the addition of 46,338 taxpayers in 2023-24 and approximately 33,000 new taxpayers up to December 2024.

He said a statewide campaign has also been launched to educate taxpayers on filing procedures, ITC claims, and compliance benefits.

The Finance Minister, in a press statement, said that the state GST Department initiated another GSTR registration drive in January, visiting approximately 48,000 new dealers and registering around 10,500 dealers across the state.

He said various community engagement methods were employed during the registration drive, including awareness camps, meetings with market and industry associations, and interactions with professionals like chartered accountants (CAs), advocates, and accountants.

Highlighting the initiatives taken to promote tax compliance among consumers, the minister said the department has extended the “Bill Liyao Inaam Pao Scheme” and sought the active involvement of school and college students to spread awareness among the younger generation.

He said the scheme has successfully imposed penalties of Rs 8.15 crore on non-compliant taxpayers and rewarded 4,106 consumers with Rs 2.45 crore for uploading their purchase bills on the Mera Bill app.

"To increase tax revenue from registered dealers, the department has ensured proper GST filing and compliance, with 93 per cent of registered taxpayers consistently filing returns on time. The department has also penalised tax evaders, collaborated with IIT Hyderabad to integrate advanced data analytic tools, and implemented adjudication and scrutiny modules to prevent revenue leakages,” said Cheema.

He emphasised that expanding the GST tax base is crucial for improving revenue, reducing tax evasion, and ensuring a fair taxation system. He said the Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann-led government is committed to achieving this goal through a two-pronged approach of bringing unregistered businesses under GST and enhancing compliance among registered taxpayers.