E-way bill generation for goods transportation under the goods and services tax (GST) system stood at a record 7.35 crore for October, highest monthly data since the indirect tax regime was rolled out in July 2017, reflecting an upswing in economic activities in the festival season and improved compliance.
E-way bill generation has been registering a steady rise since June 2021 after falling to below 4 crore in May when the second wave of the Covid pandemic was at its peak. The October e-way bill generation was 84% higher than May and 8% more than September. The daily e-way generation rose 4.7% on month to 23.71 lakh in October compared with 22.65 lakh in September.
E-way bill generation by businesses rose to 6.79 crore for September from 6.59 crore in August and 6.42 crore in July. It had touched a high of 7.12 crore in March before the second wave of the pandemic hit the economy in April-May.
Higher e-way bills generation is reflected in higher GST revenues. GST collections came in at Rs1,30,127 crore in October (September sales), the second highest mop-up in the history of the comprehensive indirect tax that was launched in July 2017.
