CHANDIGARH: Punjab Finance, Planning, Excise and Taxation Minister Advocate Harpal Singh Cheema on Sunday announced that Punjab has registered an exceptional 28.29 per cent growth in State Goods and Services Tax (SGST) cash collections during October 2026, compared with approximately 14 per cent growth in SGST collections at the national level, highlighting the State Government's sustained efforts towards strengthening revenue mobilisation, improving tax compliance and curbing tax evasion.
Disclosing the latest collection figures, Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said, "Punjab's SGST cash collections increased from ₹803.07 crore in October 2025 to ₹1,030.29 crore in October 2026, registering an additional collection of ₹227.22 crore and a remarkable growth of 28.29 per cent..
Highlighting the achievement, Finance Minister Cheema said, "Punjab has crossed the ₹1,000 crore SGST cash collection milestone for the second time during 2026, following the collection of approximately ₹1,182 crore in April." He said that this is the first time since the implementation of GST in 2017 that Punjab has achieved SGST cash collections exceeding ₹1,000 crore in October.
The Finance Minister further disclosed that Punjab's gross GST collections during October 2026 reached ₹2,716.60 crore, compared with ₹2,393.22 crore during October 2025, registering an increase of ₹323.38 crore and growth of approximately 14 per cent.
Highlighting Punjab's strong performance against the national trend during the current financial year, Cheema said, "State's cumulative gross GST revenue registered growth of 16.39 per cent during April–October 2026, compared with national cumulative gross GST growth of approximately 15 per cent during the corresponding period." He said that Punjab's sustained revenue growth demonstrates the effectiveness of improved compliance monitoring, technology-driven scrutiny and stronger revenue administration.
Giving details of the cumulative performance, Finance Minister Cheema informed that Punjab's gross GST collections during April–October 2026 reached ₹18,047.68 crore, compared with ₹15,505.66 crore during the corresponding period of the previous financial year, registering an additional collection of ₹2,542.02 crore.
Highlighting the strong performance under VAT and CST, the Finance Minister disclosed that the combined collections under these two tax heads increased by 23.76 per cent during October 2026, reaching ₹763.49 crore compared with ₹616.93 crore during October 2025. This represents an additional revenue of ₹146.56 crore, he added.
Cheema said that the encouraging growth across GST, VAT and CST reflects the Punjab Government's comprehensive approach towards strengthening revenue mobilisation across all major tax streams through improved monitoring, better compliance and effective administrative measures.
Highlighting the department's intensified enforcement activities, the Finance Minister disclosed that the Excise and Taxation Department imposed penalties amounting to ₹111.12 crore during October 2026 through sustained enforcement action against tax evasion, irregular transportation of goods, fake billing and other violations of GST provisions.