Govt yet to decide on taxing cash transactions: Shaktikanta Das

10 Feb 2017 Evaluate

Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das has clarified that the government has not taken any decision on levying a Banking Cash Transaction Tax (BCTT) on cash deals of Rs 50,000 and above, as suggested by the high-powered Chief Ministers’ panel recently. He said that government will examine the report very carefully and take appropriate decision.

The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu-headed committee on digitisation had in its report last month recommended a cap on cash in all types of big-ticket transactions and a levy on cash deals beyond Rs 50,000 as it sought to discourage the use of physical currency. Apart from taxing cash transactions, the panel had said the government should abolish banks' interest on credit card transactions, give tax refund to consumers on digital payments and extend Rs 1,000 subsidy on smartphones to income-tax non-payees to promote a less-cash digital economy.

Talking on tax rates, Das stated that the government has certain fiscal constraints and reduction in corporate tax rates overnight will be difficult for the government because fiscal cost will be very high and government will not be able to do justice to various other sectors of the economy. Noting corporate tax reduction can be done in phrases he also said that it is dependent on the financial affordability of the government without compromising the spending requirements in various critical sectors like infrastructure.

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