GST rollout on June 30 midnight, says Jaitley
The much-awaited goods and services tax (GST) will be officially launched at midnight of June 30 during a special function in Parliament’s Central Hall.
Finance minister Arun Jaitley said on Tuesday there will be no special session of Parliament, though a function to launch the GST will be held in the presence of President Pranab Mukherjee and vice-president Hamid Ansari.
Former prime ministers Manmohan Singh and HD Deve Gowda will also be present for the function. Chief ministers of different states have also been invited.
In Lucknow, Prime Minister Narendra Modi termed the rollout of the GST from July 1 as “historic” and said that the world will witness how political parties of various ideological hues came together to usher in this major reform.
“Roll out of the GST from July 1 will be historic. It will set an example for the world,” the PM said, addressing a gathering at the APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University (AKTU) in Lucknow.
Modi said that he was grateful to all those who had contributed towards the formation of a consensus over the tax reform.
Days before the new tax structure kicks in, Jaitley said he expects some initial hiccups in the new taxation system.
“The challenges may occur due to some technical glitches or filing problems, but over medium to long term, revenues of Centre and states will grow and the size of formal economy too will grow,” he told reporters in New Delhi.
FM Jaitley said switching to the new tax regime will boost revenues as GST would help in checking tax evasion and bringing more transparency.
“Consequently, it should have a positive impact on the GDP,” said Jaitley.
Ruling out any further slippage in the timeline, Jaitley said small businesses have been given enough time to prepare for the July 1 rollout.
“We have been saying for the last six months it would be July 1, nobody has any business not to be ready,” Jaitley told reporters. “If he’s still not ready, then I’m afraid he does not want to be ready.”
Around 6.5 million firms have already registered for the GST and more are expected to sign up for what has been billed as the biggest tax reform in India’s 70-year history.
Once implemented, the GST
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