Guj seeks GST cut on Covid essentials, council says yes

Gandhinagar: The Gujarat government on Friday sought a reduction in goods and services tax (GST) rates on items used for the treatment of Covid-19. The state sought these relaxations in the national GST council meeting which was held virtually, and the council has agreed to do the needful, said deputy chief minister Nitin Patel

Patel, who is also the state health and finance minister, along with top officials of the state finance department attended the online meeting. The state wanted the GST rates cut on ventilators, other equipment, and medicines used for Covid-19 treatment.

Patel said, “The meeting of the GST council went very smoothly. He added, “The council has also promised to give Rs 13,000 crore this year as the GST income gap to Gujarat.” Patel added: “Last year, the amount of the GST income gap was Rs 9,200 crore.

“Like other states, we requested the GST council to reduce the GST rates on medical oxygen plants, oxygen generators, concentrators, and oximeters.” He added: “The council agreed to reduce the rates from the present 12%.”

The DyCM said, “We asked the council to reduce GST rates on life-support machines like ventilators and on medicines to lower cost of Covid-19 treatment.” Currently, the rates on these essentials range from 12% to 18%, he said. “The council decided to appoint a ministerial committee with representation from various states,” he said. “The council requested the committee to submit its views by next week’s meeting.”

Patel further said: “We are hopeful of a significant reduction in the GST rates on life-support systems and other Covid-19 essentials.”

The state government had also sought a cap on late fee payment charges as many dealers and GST card-holders requested relaxation. Now, it has been decided to cap the late payment fees in the range of Rs 2,000 to Rs 10,000 instead of an unspecified amount.