The GoM of state ministers on GST rate rationalisation on Thursday accepted the Centre's proposal to move to a two-slab structure of 5 and 18 per cent. Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and convenor of rate rationalisation GoM Samrat Choudhary said the six-member state ministerial panel has also accepted the proposal of removing the 12 and 28 per cent slabs.
The TMC-led West Bengal government has already started laying the groundwork for the election, setting the tone with the recent Bengal Global Business Summit and the state Budget.
Finance ministers of states demanded an increase in allocation under 50-year interest-free loan scheme, while fiscally stressed states like Punjab and Kerala pitched for a special package and borrowing flexibility, sources said on Friday. In a pre-budget meeting with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, states have also urged for higher borrowing limits to support fiscal activities, besides additional funds for Jal Jeevan Mission.
The Group of Ministers (GoM) on goods and services tax (GST) rate rationalisation, which convened in Goa on Wednesday, reviewed the GST rates for over 100 items, including textiles, handloom goods, agricultural products, fertilisers, and educational materials. However, no consensus was reached on any of the items, with further discussions scheduled for next month in Delhi.
Term life insurance policies, and senior citizens' health insurance premium are likely to be exempted from GST as most members of a state ministerial panel favoured cutting taxes to benefit the common man, an official said on Saturday. The GoM to decide on GST on health and life insurance premiums in its meeting on Saturday decided to exempt GST on premiums paid by individuals, other than senior citizens, for health insurance with coverage of up to Rs 5 lakh. However, 18 per cent GST will continue to be levied for health insurance cover of over Rs 5 lakh.
Of the two rate structures on the table, one suggests tax slabs of 8 per cent, 16 per cent, and 24 per cent. The other proposes tax slabs at 9 per cent, 18 per cent, and 27 per cent.
Kharge said conducting polls in seven phases meant that nearly all the development works will be stopped.
Just as the umpire's decision is no longer final, what is disdainfully rejected is the age-old dictum that the game should be played and watched in the spirit of the game, sighs Uddalok Bhattacharya.
Noted economist and senior Trinamool Congress leader Amit Mitra is likely to step down as the West Bengal finance minister and even retire from active politics due to ill health, party sources said on Sunday.
Analysts have their doubts how much independence she has as finance minister. As Amit Mitra advises the chief minister, day-to-day work is done by the finance secretary and the chief secretary.
The finance ministry has set up two committees of state finance ministers which would rework rate slabs, review GST exempt items and identify potential evasion sources. Four years after the roll out of the national Goods and Services Tax (GST), which replaced the complex indirect tax structure, the centre and states have started work on moving towards a "simpler rate structure in GST" by reviewing the current rate slabs, including special rates and merger of rate slabs. The Group of Ministers (GoM) on rate rationalisation would also review items under inverted duty structure to help minimise refund payout, and review the supply of goods and services exempt under GST with an objective to expand the tax base and eliminate breaking of input tax credit (ITC) chain.
To help the country emerge as a true welfare State, political parties must put the country's interests first before strategising to win elections and short-term goals, argues Ramesh Menon.
Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra expressed confidence in GST.
He termed this as 'intolerance' towards the constitutional head of the state, and expressed confidence that the media will not be a 'silent spectator' to such episodes.
Experts say moratorium on interest not a solution, debt needs to be restructured; state must look for avenues to increase revenue and curtail expenditure.
Six activists belonging to Communist Party of India-Marxist and its youth wing Students Federation of India, including two women, were arrested in New Delhi on Monday for allegedly assaulting West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra outside the Planning Commission office two weeks back.
Communist Party of India-Marxist's student wing Students Federation of India on Thursday claimed that none of its activists were involved in the heckling of West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra in New Delhi and described the incident as "unfortunate".
Delhi Police have registered a case against unknown persons for manhandling West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra outside the Planning Commission office.
Nobody should be surprised if the Congress-led alliance at the Centre now makes favourable policy overtures to Naveen Patnaik also, like it has done for Nitish Kumar and Mamata Banerjee, in the hope of strengthening its prospects after the next general elections, says AK Bhattacharya
Many states are open to the idea of petrol and diesel being brought under the goods and services tax (GST) regime - contrary to the perception that they are averse to it - but they want a concrete proposal, including a compensation mechanism, from the Centre. West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra says while the issue can be discussed, the Centre may not be keen to bring the change because it earns "much more" from taxes on petrol and diesel. "(The peak rate of) GST is 28 per cent. Under the regime, the Centre would only get 14 per cent. "So, definitely, the Union government does not want GST on fuel. It is all lies. Currently, they are in a very cozy place," Mitra said.
The West Bengal Assembly had in a special session last week passed the West Bengal Protection of Interest of Depositors in Financial Establishment Bill, 2013, to protect investors in chit fund companies.
Students' Federation of India General Secretary Ritabrata Bhattacharjee today apologized for the manhandling of West Bengal Finance minister Amit Mitra in Delhi on April nine, but said that his organisation was not involved in it.
Though no reason was officially cited for his absence, Trinamool Congress sources here said Mitra will attend a crucial parliamentary meeting of the party in Kolkata on Tuesday to discuss the Centre's decision to hike diesel price, restrict of subsidised cooking gas and allow FDI in retail and decide the future of the party's ties with the United Progressive Alliance.
'Food security' will, unfortunately, become a giant boondoggle.
Outlay for cultural activities increased, for social welfare schemes slashed
In Kolkata, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee let her annoyance be known.
Hours after West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra met Pranab Mukherjee to seek a special financial package for the state, the Congress on Monday indicated that the crisis-ridden state could be helped but dismissed suggestions on any quid pro quo for the Presidential polls.
The Mamata Banerjee government, which came to power in July last year, has been demanding special package in the form of interest moratorium.
Trinamool Congress candidate and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce And Industry secretary general Amit Mitra, pitted against Communist Party of India-Marxist candidate and West Bengal Finance minister Ashim Dasgupta, is confident that his party is heading for a victory at the forthcoming Assembly elections.
In a central govt report, the state only has figures from 2001-02 to 2003-04. But nothing after that.
Trinamool Congress candidate Amit Mitra, who is an economist by training and is pitted against West Bengal Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta in the Assembly polls, has said the state's financial condition can be improved with a flow of investments and expansion of existing industrial units.
Bihar deputy chief minister and finance minister Sushil Modi was on Monday elected the new chairman of the empowered committee of state finance ministers.
They've proposed a sub-committee under the proposed GST Council or the Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers to resolve any disputes in the tax's implementation.
The 2,75,000 new jobs would cost a monthly Rs 300 crore (Rs 3 billion), officials with knowledge of the development said.
The Centre is working out a financial package for West Bengal to tide over the huge problems the new government has inherited from the Left Front administration, Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Monday.
The Empowered Committee of state finance ministers is meeting under the chairmanship of West Bengal finance minister Asim Dasgupta to work out agreements on various aspects of the GST.
The empowered committee on GST headed by West Bengal finance minister Asim Dasgupta has agreed to a dual structure of the proposed indirect tax regime, which is likely to be introduced from April 2010. The new tax regime would do away with most of the indirect taxes levied at the Centre like excise and services tax, and VAT and Octroi at the State level.
While West Bengal's debt burden stands at about Rs 1.92 lakh crore (Rs 1.92 trillion), Uttar Pradesh has a loan burden of Rs 2.21 lakh crore (Rs 2.21 trillion) and Maharastra Rs 2.08 lakh crore (Rs 2.08 trillion), while the central government has a debt burden of Rs 38 lakh crore (Rs 38 trillion), Dasgupta told the West Bengal Assembly on Monday.
According to Mitra, items such as foodgrain, vegetables, leather goods, footwear, cottage cheese, puffed and flattened rice, books and entertainment tax, among several others, should be in the zero-tax bracket.
Mitra said that Tata group firm TCS was creating additional 20,000 jobs.
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