Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Nov 7: India's e-way bill generation surged 23.14 per cent year-on-year to a record 156.21 million in October, compared with 126.86 million in the same month last year, reflecting strong goods movement and robust economic activity during the festive season, according to data from the Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN).

The October figure also marked a 10.37 per cent increase over the 141.53 million e-way bills generated in September, which was the previous record.

An e-way bill is an electronic document required under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime for the transportation of goods valued at more than ?50,000. It contains details of the goods, consignor, consignee and transporter.

Shivam Mehta, partner at Lakshmikumaran & Sridharan, said purchases and inventory adjustments were deferred to some extent last year following GST rate rationalisation in September, with sales and goods movement picking up towards the end of that month and continuing into October.

He said the record growth in October reflected the positive impact of lower tax rates, which encouraged greater compliance and brought more businesses, particularly those in the unorganised sector, into the formal tax network. Strong consumer demand during the festive season and improved compliance also contributed to the surge.

Abhishek Jain, partner and national head of indirect tax at KPMG India, said the record figures reflected strong festive demand, increased movement of goods and robust business activity across the country. He said the trend was encouraging for GST collections and indicated the underlying strength and momentum of the Indian economy.

The increase comes amid government efforts to simplify goods transportation and reduce compliance-related hurdles under the GST regime.

At its October 8 meeting, the GST Council proposed changes aimed at curbing routine checks of goods transported by road. Under the proposed framework, vehicles can be stopped only on the basis of specific information and with the approval of an officer of the rank of joint commissioner or above.

The proposed changes also seek to restrict checks, detention and seizure to states where the supplier or buyer is based, keeping transit states out of the enforcement process. Confiscation of goods or vehicles while in transit will no longer be permitted.