New Delhi, April 4 : The surge in GST collections which have crossed the Rs 2 lakh crore mark for 2023-24 reflects the strength of the Indian economy across sectors and regions of the country and augurs well for keeping the fiscal deficit in check going ahead.

Large states across the country have also registered a double-digit growth in tax collections during March which shows the depth of the Indian economy.

Karnataka has clocked the highest growth rate of 26 per cent in GST collections while Maharashtra has recorded a 22 per cent rise.

A welcome development has been that the country’s largest state Uttar Pradesh has also posted a 19 per cent jump in GST collections which is at par with Tamil Nadu.

Haryana, home to the country’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki has also emerged as a high performer with a 23 per cent growth in GST revenue.

MS Mani, partner Deloitte India said: “GST collection also being a barometer for economic activities, as it is a transaction based tax, it can be reasonably inferred that the growth has been across regions and sectors.”

Abhishek Jain, a partner at KPMG, said that India's strong economic growth has led to increased tax collection. The Indian economy clocked an 8.4 per cent growth rate in the October-December quarter.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has also stated that the economy is on track to post an 8 per cent growth rate in the Jan-March quarter. The GST collections for the year are both an outcome and a strong confirmation of this robust performance.