17 states ratifying GST best example of cooperative

Ratification of the Constitution Amendment Bill on GST by 17 states in nearly three weeks is the best example of cooperative federalism, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar said.

"As many as 17 states in almost three weeks have ratified the GST Bill and this is the best example of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's doctrine of cooperative federalism," he said.

"GST is the biggest taxation reform so far which will forever change the way we compute and pay taxes. At the same time, it will check tax on tax," he said, adding that it will also usher in a new era of economic growth and prosperity for all sections of the society.

After Parliament passed the Constitution Amendment Bill on August 8, as many as 16 states, starting with Assam, have ratified the Bill.

The states which have passed the legislation include Bihar (August 16), Jharkhand (August 17), Chhattisgarh (August 22), Himachal Pradesh (August 22), Gujarat (August 23), Madhya Pradesh and Delhi (August 24), Nagaland (August 24), Maharashtra, Haryana, Sikkim (August 29), Mizoram, Telangana (August 30), Goa (August 31), Odisha (September 1) and Rajasthan (September 2).

GST being a constitutional amendment requires 50 per cent of state assemblies to ratify it.

GST will create uniform market for seamless movement of goods and services with one tax rate.

After the Presidential assent, the government will notify the GST Council. Union Finance Minister will head the Council, which will comprise state Finance Ministers.

The GST Council will decide on the tax rate, cess and surcharges which are to be subsumed and also decide on the goods and services which would be exempted from the purview of the new indirect tax regime.

The states and the Centre are working overtime and talking to stakeholders to draft the Central GST, State GST and Integrated GST laws.

The CGST and IGST will be drafted on the basis of the model GST law. The states will draft their respective State GST (SGST) laws with minor variation incorporating state-based exemption. The IGST law would deal with inter-state movement of goods and services.

The government plans to roll out the new indirect tax regime from April 1, 2017.