GST council on Saturday are likely to cut taxes on 30-40 items across various tax slabs. Sanitary napkins, handlooms and handicrafts could fall under lower tax brackets. Petroleum products that have been constitutionally included in the GST but have not been levied yet, could also be enforced.
The 28th meeting of the GST council in New Delhi on Saturday will work towards reducing the burden of taxes on the common man. The revenue earned from GST on a monthly basis is higher than ₹1.1 lakh cr and the annual revenues could exceed ₹13 lakh cr this fiscal. To commemorate the successful implementation of GST in one year, Piyush Goyal, the Finance Minister of India asserts, ‘I assure you that the average monthly GST collection will cress ₹1.10 lakh cr. I feel that ₹13 lakh cr revenue will come from GST this fiscal’.
Since the revenues are positive numbers and more entities might be added to various slabs, a tax cut on the existing items across various slabs might not take the revenue downside.
Petroleum products under GST
Though petroleum products have been included in the GST framework they have not yet been imposed. Mr.Jaitley justifies this with the Constitutional amendment proposed that kept the petroleum products outside the GST. ‘I worked out a formula that petroleum products would be included in the amendment providing for the GST, but the Council can decide the date from which to bring them into GST’, he says.
Various state governments are not prepared to impose GST on petroleum products owing to their revenue position. ‘When the States are more comfortable with the revenue position, it would be an ideal time to strike for a consensus between them’, adds Mr.Jaitley.
GST was rolled out on the 1st of July last year with all items, goods and services falling under the four tax slab categories- 5%, 12%, 28% and 18%. Gold and other precious stones fell under the 3% bracket. GST was introduced to avoid indirect taxes and have a uniform tax regime.