Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh achieved its highest-ever monthly commercial tax collections in April 2026, marking a robust start to the new financial year. The surge was fueled by technology-driven enforcement and improved compliance, according to chief commissioner of state taxes Ahmed Babu.
Record Collections Amid Challenges
The state recorded ₹5,543 crore in April, a 12.08% increase from ₹4,946 crore in the same month last year. This growth came despite structural challenges from GST rate rationalization, which is estimated to reduce nearly ₹8,000 crore annually.
Breakdown of Collections
- Net GST collections: ₹3,797 crore, up 6.83% year-on-year.
- Gross GST (excluding cess): ₹4,323 crore.
- Centre's IGST settlement: ₹2,194 crore, nearly 13% higher than April 2025.
- Petroleum VAT: ₹1,613 crore, a sharp 26.72% increase.
- Professional tax: ₹42.9 crore, aided by Aadhaar-linked enforcement.
Technology-Driven Enforcement
Ahmed Babu stated, "We have shown that even in a challenging tax environment, technology-driven enforcement and data intelligence can significantly improve compliance and revenues." The state fetched nearly ₹600 crore more than last year in April alone.
The department's strong performance was attributed to AI-driven and data-backed initiatives, including:
- Automated scrutiny systems to detect GST return mismatches.
- AI-based IGST input tax credit reversals.
- Analytics using UPI transaction data to bring unregistered businesses into the tax net.
- Identification of over 20,000 high-value PAN accounts for enforcement action.
Integration and Data Sharing
GST registration was integrated with discom electricity data to verify business premises, reducing fake registrations. Data sharing with labour, registration, and mining departments helped detect leakages in construction, real estate, and mining sectors.
Targeted Enforcement Drives
Targeted enforcement drives in restaurants and online food delivery platforms, using aggregator data, uncovered instances of turnover suppression. This comprehensive approach has set a new benchmark for tax administration in the state.
