The Goods and Services Tax revenue collection for October stood at Rs 1,51,718 crore – the second-highest ever since the roll-out of the new tax regime in July 2017, the Union finance ministry said on Tuesday.

The highest monthly collection of Rs 1,67,540 crore was recorded in April. The GST collection has been above the Rs 1.4 lakh crore-mark for the last eight months in a row.

Of the total revenue collection in October, the central GST component amounted to Rs 26,039 crore and state GST to Rs 33,396 crore. Revenue generated from integrated GST stood at Rs 81,778 crore, while GST cess amounted to Rs 10,505 crore.

“October 2022 reflects a combination of quarter-end flows relating to the transactions in the previous month, as well as the surge in GST e-way bills ahead of a robust festive season,” Aditi Nayar, the chief economist of ratings agency ICRA told The Hindu.

Despite the significant collection, several states recorded negative GST growth in October. Jammu and Kashmir recorded a sharp 34% drop in revenues in stark contrast to neighbouring Ladakh which registered 74% growth.

Other states that recorded negative GST growth are Chhattisgarh (-3%), Assam (-13%), Mizoram and Manipur (-23% each) and Bihar (-1%).