GST Council’s role may widen to non-tax issues, say members
The process of thrashing out the nitty-gritty of the goods and services tax (GST) has set in motion the idea of a new “horizontal” federal system where states engage with one another closely, according to some state finance ministers.
In a panel discussion hosted by they felt that the GST Council had emerged as a platform where finance ministers from the 32 states and Union territories could take up issues other than the roll out of the indirect tax on July 1.
Some of the panellists disclosed that the Council has discussed reworking the basket of goods in the consumer price index (CPI), the gauge that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) tracks to frame its monetary policy, in order for it to reflect the new consumption and cost of living realities. An updated CPI will be useful in making adjustments in the rates of indirect tax, which affect the poor as much as the rich.
“What the Central Statistical Office needs to do is to evolve a new consumption basket to assess real consumption,” said Jammu and Kashmir finance minister Haseeb Drabu.
At a two-day meeting in Srinagar, the 14th of the Council, it approved tax rates on 1,211 goods and also finalised the rates that various services will attract, completing the GST framework.
The idea of discussing issues other than the single indirect tax within the Council received a positive response from other state finance ministers as well.
“We can develop consensus on that and can take on board the issues brought up by states. GST Council will open a new era of trust between states as well as between the Centre and the states. We have never seen such mutual cooperation between the states in any other body,” said Himanta Biswa Sarma, finance minister of Assam.
Sarma added that the Council can be the foundation of new India and the best symbol of a federal polity. “States are now devoting time among themselves to economic issues, a phenomenon which has never happened before,” he added.
Mentioning an area where states could work together, Kerala finance minister Thomas Isaac said that the 3% borrowing limit for them needs to be raised to enable financially healthy states to borrow more for development purposes.
“If a state is meeting its revenue collection target, why should the Union government limit its borrowing, which is to be used for investing in public assets,” he asked.
Bengaluru-based drug maker Strides Shasun Ltd plans to step up product filings with the US regulator starting in the current financial year, as it seeks to expand in the world’s largest drug market, executive director Badree Komandur said.
The company plans to file 15-20 abbreviated new drug applications (ANDAs) with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) annually, as against 10-12 applications earlier, he said, adding that on a quarterly basis, Strides intends to file 4-5 ANDAs.
“Regulated markets like the US and Australia will be the real focus of the company. Our R&D (research and development) pipeline and product commercialisation will drive growth,” Komandur said.
In 2016-17, the company’s sales in regulated markets were ₹1,776.2 crore, up 56% from the previous year.
Over the last two years, the company has significantly increased spending on R&D with focus on products with specified modified-release technologies, Komandar said. Spending on R&D was 80% higher year-onyear at ₹136.1 crore in 2016-17.