Karnataka urges Centre to compensate for GST revenue loss
Bengaluru: Karnataka on Thursday urged the Centre to compensate for the GST revenue loss due to COVID-19 induced lockdown and floods in the state.
Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai who represented Karnataka in the 41st GST Council Meeting said the state's tax revenue was estimated at Rs 1.8 lakh crore.
"However due to the coronavirus and floods, achieving economic growth will be difficult," a statement issued by his office quoted Bommai as saying during the virtual GST council meeting.
The Home Minister pointed out that despite the challenging situation, the state has managed to collect 71.61 per cent of the said target, which is higher than other states.
Yet, the GST compensation amount for four months works out to around Rs 13,764 crore. Reimbursement to the state by the Centre is crucial for the state's economy, Bommai said in the meeting.
Underlining that there is a constitutional provision under the GST regulations to pay the state for the shortage in revenue, Bommai insisted that the dues be paid immediately.
According to Bommai, the cess collected to compensate for the revenue losses to the state goes directly to the Centre.
This makes states borrowing difficult, he added.
The Centre, said Bommai, has the power to impose special taxes enabling states to raise money.
Centre also has power to extend the imposition of special taxes beyond 2023.
"Hence, it is appropriate for the Centre to facilitate states to help borrow money and compensate for the losses to the state," the Home Minister said.
On behalf of Karnataka, he extended all support to the Centre to overcome the prevailing financial crisis in the country.
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Rickelton's ton in vain as SRH beat MI by 6 wickets
Mumbai (PTI): Ryan Rickelton's whirlwind unbeaten ton was overshadowed by Heinrich Klaasen's unbeaten 65 as Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Mumbai Indians by six wickets in an IPL match here on Wednesday.
Chasing an imposing 244-run target, Travis Head (76 off 30) and Abhishek Sharma (45 off 24) shared 129 runs for the opening wicket to set the platform for SRH.
Klaasen (65 not out off 30 balls) then displayed his all-round hitting abilities to guide SRH home with the help of Nitish Kumar Reddy (21) and Salil Arora (30 not out off 10) in 18.4 overs.
Earlier, Rickelton's knock powered MI to 243 for five.
MI rode on a 93-run stand between Rickelton (123 not out off 55 balls) and Will Jacks (46 off 22) in 7.1 overs for the opening stand to power the side.
MI skipper Hardik Pandya scored a valuable 31 off 15 balls before being dismissed.
Praful Hinge (2/54), Eshan Malinga (1/29), Sakib Hasan (1/39) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (1/31) were the wicket-takers for SRH.
Brief Scores:
Mumbai Indian: 243 for 5 in 20 overs (Ryan Rickelton 123 not out; Praful Hinge 2/54).
Sunrisers Hyderabad: 249 for 4 in 18.4 overs (Travis Head 76, Heinrich Klaasen 65 not out; AM Ghazanfar 2/51).
