Union Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Arjun Ram Meghwal has said that the number of tax slabs in the newly-introduced Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime may be reduced only after the revenue collections improve. He also noted that the GST currently has five tax slabs including exempted category at zero, five, 12, 18 and 28 percent.
Defending the multiple tax slabs, Meghwal has said that the central government was trying to introduce the new tax system with the consent of states and did not want to impose it. He also said that the Centre could have taken decisions in the GST Council on the basis of the majority but that was not done. Adding further, he pointed out that while in pre-GST regime only 80 lakh dealers were registered, another 13.2 lakh had been added after the implementation of it. He also noted that out of which 56,000 were from West Bengal only, the highest among in India.
Describing the GST Network (GSTN) as a ‘perfect system’, the minister further said that “We must be facing some teething problems but it is a perfect system.” He mentioned that the new system will remove inspector raj and there will be no human interface and added that the government will improve the GSTN system.