The West Bengal Authority for Advance Ruling (WB AAR) has ruled that transporting segregated municipal waste to designated dumpsites for the Howrah Municipal Corporation qualifies as a “pure service” under the GST law.
The petitioner, Hari Narayan Singh, sought clarification on whether his conservancy-related services, which involve transporting waste from secondary transfer points to dumpsites using fuel-operated vehicles, qualify for exemption under entries 3, 3A, or 4 of the notification.
According to the petitioner, his work was a pure service associated with the municipal functions under Article 243W of the Constitution, especially public health and sanitation. He mentioned that no goods were supplied before HMC, and consideration was as per the quantity of waste transported. He put reliance on previous rulings in Indrajit Singh, Vinayak Singh, and Banchu Das, which had granted similar exemptions.
The Revenue agreed, noting that the activity engaged in the transportation and management of waste, without any transfer of property in goods. It validated that these services come within the exemption in Sl. No. 3.
It has been cited that the services furnished through the petitioner are linked with the municipal function of solid waste management, which falls within the Twelfth Schedule read with Article 243W of the Constitution. The receiver of the service, the Howrah Municipal Corporation, is a local authority under the GST law.
After reviewing the submissions, the authority noted that the applicant is a registered proprietorship firm and is in conservancy-related services. The applicant has been awarded a contract to transport segregated waste from the secondary transfer point to the dumpsite in an organised manner, using their own fuel-operated vehicle, within a specific zone of a designated ward in the Howrah Municipal Corporation.
Therefore, Entry 4 was not applicable, as Singh was a non-governmental authority, and Entry 3A was not pertinent, as no goods were supplied.
Read Also: GST AAAR Clarifies Margin Scheme Applicability U/R 35(5) for Sale Used Batteries, Plastic Waste
As per the authority the Entry 3 is applicable therefore as the services were pure, furnished before the local authority and is pertinent with the municipal functions under the Twelfth Schedule and specifies that the petitioner contract needs him to keep vehicles, upload daily activity logs in the “Purobikkha” app, and obtain payment as per the weight of garbage removed further confirming the absence of any goods component.
The bench, Shafeeq S, and Jyadip Kmar Chakrabarti ( Members of West Bengal Authority for Advance Ruling ) stated that: “The referred activity will qualify for serial no. 3 of Notification No. 12/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28.06.2017, as amended. As such, it is exempted from tax.”
| Applicant Name | Hari Narayan Singh |
| GSTIN of the applicant | 19BANPS4245K1Z0 |
| Case Number | WBAAR 33 of 2025-26 |
| ARN | AD1912250029444 |
| Applicant | Mr. Arun Kumar Dubey, CA |
| West Bengal GST AAR | Read Order |
