Chandigarh, June 2 -- Punjab has registered a record 25.31% growth in net GST collection for the month of May. Finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema said the net GST revenue rose to Rs.2,006.31 crore in May 2025, up from Rs.1,601.14 crore in May 2024, an increase of Rs.405.17 crore. In May 2024, the state had seen a growth of Rs.121 crore (8.17%) over Rs.1,480 crore collected in May 2023. Cheema attributed the growth to strong tax administration, enhanced compliance, and a resilient economic environment under the AAP government, adding that this points to an accelerating growth trend in Punjab's fiscal health. He further stated that this surge not only represents the highest year-on-year monthly growth in recent years but also outpaces the national average GST growth. "We have curbed tax evasion, improved field-level enforcement, and enabled a seamless taxation framework that supports businesses while safeguarding state revenues," he added. The minister said key actions included the physical verification of 195 bogus firms, leading to the blocking of Rs.75.79 crore in fraudulent input tax credit (ITC); detection of major tax evasion in the coal sector, involving off-book transactions exceeding Rs.225 crore and Rs.11.65 crore in evaded tax; and the uncovering of Rs.900 crore in bogus gold bullion transactions in Ludhiana, with Rs.21 crore of ineligible ITC blocked. Cheema said the milestone is particularly commendable given that it has comeduring a period when Punjab, as a border state, faced heightened tensions during the armed conflict between India andPakistan....