Just about a month before the formal rollout of GST regime in India, the Himachal Pradesh Assembly unanimously cleared the State Goods and Services Tax Bill on Saturday in a special session.
The Bill got unequivocal nod of the HP Assembly in just in 61 minutes that includes the time taken by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, who holds the finance portfolio also, to present the Bill in the House.
Terming the Bill to be favourable for common man as well as the industry, Virbhadra Singh said that introduction of GST would help increase GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product) by 1.5 to 2 percent.
In an attempt to give Congress the credit of bringing this tax reform, the Chief Minister said that the process of tax reforms was started in 1986 on certain commodities and later a Tax Reform Committee was constituted in 1991, followed by a Committee of Chief Minister, which was set up in 1999. And the recommendations made by the Chief Minister’s committee were implemented in 2003 in form of VAT (Value Added Tax).
Singh also mentioned that former Union Finance Minister P Chidambram had first introduced the GST in his Budget speech of 2006-07. He said that the UPA-II Government had tried hard to get the GST implemented and the then Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had introduced the GST Bill for the first time in the Parliament in 2010-10 but the Bill was sent to Standing Committee of Parliament after a consensus could not be reached.
He said that finally the Bill was brought by NDA and got the parliamentary approval as the Opposition parties, including Congress, were already in support of the idea of One Nation-One Tax.
later, supporting the Bill, leader of Opposition, Prem Kumar Dhumal said that the role out of GST was the greatest tax reform in independent India.
He said India had joined the league of 150 countries, where such revolutionary tax reform had been introduced. He said that 1,200 items were short-listed to levy GST but the staple food Wheat and Rice were kept out of its ambit.
Dhumal said that more than seven percent daily use items were kept out of the GST, while only 5 percent GST would be levied on 14 per cent items. In remaining items, 17 per cent items would attract GST at a rate of 12 per cent and 18 per cent GST would be charged on 43 per cent items. He said that to maintain moreover improve the tax revenue, 19 percent items were brought under GST slap of 28 percent, but these items includes those, which are not used by commoners.
He said that the transparent structure of GST would help improve the overall tax base of the country and curb the menace of corruption.
He also said that people with an annual turn over of less than Rs 10 lac would not be required to get registered under GST.
later, Transport Minister G S Bali participating in the debate said that with the implementation of GST, a new phase of economic history of the country would start.
He said that NDA Government must recognize the contribution of Congress, for seeing the GST Bill through, in lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. BJP Chief Whip Suresh Bhardwaj, BJP legislator Ravinder.