The ongoing slowdown has started taking its toll on the economy of Haryana and it could be a major cause for worry for the state government. On the other hand, Punjab has recorded a 38.9% increase in VAT collections in the first six months of 2008-09, placing the state at No 3 in the pecking order, a remarkable jump from its 24th position in 2006.
While Haryana had set a tax collection target of Rs 11,840 crore for the current financial year, it has been able to realise less than 60% of the targeted amount.
Data collected from the excise and taxation department reveals that by end December only Rs 6,585 crore had been collected. The state government had fixed the tax collection target for 2008-09 keeping in view the 20%-plus growth in value added tax (VAT) since 2003 when the Haryana implemented it. The targeted figure was about Rs 2,000 crore more than the last year.
This is in sharp contrast to the situation in neighbouring Punjab. During the current fiscal, the contribution of agriculture to Punjab?s gross revenue will be about Rs 4,300 crore, the largest contribution by a single sector to the state?s gross revenue. The current paddy season also marks Rs 600 crore as its contribution to VAT collections. In the first six months of 2008-09, VAT collection had gone up to Rs 3,330.82 crore, much more than the collections during the same period last year.
Punjab?s cooperation minister, Capt Kanwaljit Singh, is also gung-ho about the cooperative sector. He said soon Punjab would turn out to be the model for the cooperative movement for other states.
Singh said Punjab could regain the pole position if the Centre comes forward to waive off non-institutional debts of the farmers. He pointed out that farmers of the state were still under a debt of Rs 24,000 crore.