States seek 7 days on options as Centre says GST collection impacted

The coronavirus pandemic was an "act of God" that may even lead to contraction in the economy, says Finance Minister.

The coronavirus pandemic was an "act of God" that may even lead to contraction in the economy and has "severely impacted" goods and services (GST) collection, said the central government on Thursday as it offered states two options to meet their revenue shortfall.

The GST collection shortfall is Rs 2.35 trillion for fiscal 2021, the government after a meeting of the GST Council. The centre has released over Rs 1.65 trillion as GST compensation to states for fiscal 2020, including Rs 13,806 crore for March, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said.

Sitharaman said states have two options on GST compensation: borrowing