In a statement released on Sunday, May 3, 2020, GST Network Helpdesk confirmed that it has handled more than 56,000 tax-related issues in one month between March 25 and April 24. Out of the total queries received and tickets raised on the platform during this period, over 19,255 tickets were marked resolved. In this one-month period, the portal also handled the highest 2,766 tickets and 1,776 calls in a single day.
Read Also: Download GST Helpline Mobile App for GST Queries 
However, there is a significant drop in the number of queries and calls to the GST helpdesk because of the lockdown situation. Earlier, the portal used to receive almost 10,000 calls and 2,000 tickets every day. “However, due to the lockdown, there is a steep dip experienced in the call and ticket volume trend at GST helpdesk. The total received transactions (inflow of calls and GRP tickets) are approximately 20 percent of the usual volume trend,” GSTN said.
Due to the lockdown, even the GST Helpdesk had to arrange for most of its staff to work from home. Even though almost 65 percent of the organization staff was working from home, the service, including toll-free helpline, is fully operational between 9 am to 9 pm every day. Since most of the help desk agents are working from home, all the calls to the helpline are re-routed to the agents’ phones in a secured manner, said GSTIN CEO Prakash Kumar.
“This was not a small job, but necessity made GSTN and its tech partner Tech Mahindra to do this. Today, a good number of associates are providing helpdesk support to GST stakeholders. We would continue to work ensuring 360-degree safety of people and process to combat the situation,” said Kumar.
Out of the total calls received by the GSTIN (GST Identification Number) 
