New Delhi :
The much-awaited Good and Service Tax (GST) Bill will be tabled in Parliament tomorrow and the NDA government is hoping that the Bill will get a green signal in both the Houses. The NDA govt has the numbers to pass the Bill in the Lower House but has to depend on its allies and other parties to get nod in the Upper House. The ruling party has less in number in the Upper House which is a concern for them.
Let’s look at the full details of the GST Bill:-
1. The new GST Bill will be indirect tax and will be levied on sale, consumption of goods, manufacture and services across the country.
2. If the new Bill gets nod then all central and state indirect taxes and levies, including excise duty, additional excise duties, service tax, additional customs duty, surcharges and cesses, value added tax, sales tax, entertainment tax, octroi, entry tax, purchase tax, luxury tax, and taxes on lottery, betting and gambling will incorporate to one tax.
3. The GST Bill will bring equality in taxation across the country, which will be beneficial for common man. Currently, tax differs from state to state.
4. The new Bill can reduce the cost of consumers and help in rise in country’s GDP growth by 2-3 pc.
5. To implement the tax a constitutional amendment is also required as states don’t have the power to levy service tax, while the Centre does not have the power to levy tax beyond the factory gate.
6. Earlier, the UPA govt had brought the Bill in 2011, but failed to get nod. The Bill got a nod in Lok Sabha but pending in Rajya Sabha as the Bill must be cleared by two-thirds majority by both Houses, and approved by 50 pc of states.
7. States like Gujarat and Maharashtra want the extra one per cent levy extended beyond the proposed two years, and raised to two per cent. Punjab wants purchase tax outside GST.
8. If the GST Bill is passed then the Centre and states have to frame and pass GST laws which will provide the framework for the new tax.
