Chandigarh’s GST growth slows to 8% in August, trails national average and neighbours
Chandigarh’s Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections rose 8 per cent year-on-year in August 2026 to Rs 230 crore, up from Rs 212 crore a year earlier, but fell short of the national average of 9.3 per cent for domestic GST collections, according to provisional data compiled by the Union Ministry of Finance, a copy of which is with The Tribune.
The August numbers mark a reversal from July, when Chandigarh’s 12 per cent growth had comfortably outpaced the national rate of 10.1 per cent. This time, the city’s neighbours all grew faster — Punjab and Haryana both recorded 12 per cent growth, while Delhi rose 10 per cent, leaving Chandigarh trailing all three for the month.
Cumulatively, Chandigarh’s April-August GST collection stood at Rs 1,383 crore, up 3.2 per cent over the same five months last year — a modest improvement on the 2.2 per cent cumulative growth recorded till July. The pace still lags Haryana (+11.6 per cent) and Punjab (+8.3 per cent) on a cumulative basis, though Chandigarh remains ahead of Delhi, whose cumulative collections have only just turned positive at +1.2 per cent, having contracted 0.5 per cent till July.
Among Union Territories, August was a mixed month. Ladakh (+37 per cent) and Andaman & Nicobar Islands (+32 per cent) posted the sharpest gains, while Himachal Pradesh (-23 per cent), Puducherry (-13 per cent), Jammu & Kashmir (-9 per cent) and Uttarakhand (-9 per cent) all declined. Chandigarh's 8 per cent growth placed it ahead of these four but behind Ladakh and Andaman & Nicobar.
The SGST settlement data continues to favour Chandigarh over a longer horizon. For August alone, pre-settlement SGST rose 17 per cent to Rs 71 crore, while post-settlement SGST — which includes the UT's IGST share — grew a more modest 12 per cent to Rs 215 crore. But over the cumulative April-August period, the pattern reverses in Chandigarh’s favour: pre-settlement SGST is up just 10 per cent at Rs 348 crore, against a 23 per cent rise in post-settlement SGST to Rs 1,154 crore, reaffirming that the UT remains a net beneficiary of the Centre-state settlement mechanism this fiscal year.
Chandigarh’s registered taxpayer base rose to 34,333 GSTINs as of August 31, up from 34,030 in July, split between 15,061 under central jurisdiction and 19,272 under UT jurisdiction.
Nationally, gross GST revenue for August touched Rs 1,99,853 crore, up 14.8 per cent, driven by a 29 per cent jump in import-linked IGST collections. Net revenue after refunds rose 8.3 per cent to Rs 1,68,057 crore, though net domestic revenue growth was a slower 3.4 per cent, weighed down by a sharp 72.6 per cent rise in domestic refunds during the month. The Ministry cautioned that all figures are provisional and subject to revision.
At a glance
August growth: 8 per cent — Chandigarh’s GST collection rose to Rs 230 crore in August 2026, from Rs.212 crore in August 2025, falling short of the national domestic growth rate of 9.3 per cent — a reversal from July, when the city had outpaced the country.
Neighbours pull ahead — Punjab (+12%), Haryana (+12 per cent) and Delhi (+10 per cent) all grew faster than Chandigarh in August, after the UT had briefly stayed ahead of Delhi in July.
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Five-month total: Rs 1,383 crore – Chandigarh’s cumulative April-August GST collection is up 3.2 per cent over the same period last year, a slight improvement on the 2.2 per cent cumulative growth recorded till July, but still behind Haryana (+11.6 per cent) and Punjab (+8.3 per cent).
Delhi turns the corner – Delhi’s cumulative collections, which had contracted 0.5 per cent till July, have swung positive to +1.2 per cent till August, though still trailing Chandigarh’s cumulative pace.
SGST settlement still favours UT -- Cumulative post-settlement SGST (funds credited to Chandigarh, including its IGST share) is up 23 per cent at Rs 1,154 crore for the five months, well ahead of the 10 per cent rise in pre-settlement SGST at Rs 348 crore.
