Bengal govt supports new GST Bill, says Amit Mitra

Bs_logoImage
Press Trust of India Mumbai
Last Updated : Sep 14 2015 | 6:57 PM IST
The West Bengal government has no reservations over the proposed GST Bill and will support the Centre's key reform measure, state finance minister Amit Mitra said today.
"I don't think anybody has any reservations from our side. It is in our (Trinamool Congress) manifesto and Mamta Banerjee has spoken in its favour," Mitra told reporters here on the sidelines of a roadshow for its forthcoming investor summit.
He said earlier that the big concern with the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill was that it might affect the state's revenue but now the issue has been resolved.
"It was the key point where we kept saying this has to be put in the Constitutional Amendment Bill that there will be no loss to states in terms of revenue. That appears to have been put into the Constitution for five years. So that's the key point where all of us had a consensus on," he said.
On the demand from producing states to have 1 per cent additional duty over and above the common GST rate, Mitra said this has to be settled between the states before the Bill is moved and that the Centre cannot impose it on the states.
"This was the producer states versus the non-producer states. I think this is something which the government is looking at. They have formally proposed in various occasions to the empowered committee (of state finance minister on GST)," the Trinamool leader said.
He said contrary to the general perception that West Bengal has land-related issues, the state has around 4,400 acres of readymade infrastructure land available currently for industries.
Subscribe to Business Standard digital and get complimentary access to The New York Times

Smart Quarterly

₹900

3 Months

₹300/Month

SAVE 25%

Smart Essential

₹2,700

1 Year

₹225/Month

SAVE 46%

Super Saver

₹3,900

2 Years

₹162/Month

Subscribe

Renews automatically, cancel anytime

Here’s what’s included in our digital subscription plans

Access to Exclusive Premium Stories Online

  • Over 30 behind the paywall stories daily, handpicked by our editors for subscribers

Complimentary Access to The New York Times

  • News, Games, Cooking, Audio, Wirecutter & The Athletic

Business Standard Epaper

  • Digital replica of our daily newspaper — with options to read, save, and share

Curated Newsletters

  • Insights on markets, finance, politics, tech, and more delivered to your inbox

Market Analysis & Investment Insights

  • In-depth market analysis & insights with access to The Smart Investor

Archives

  • Repository of articles and publications dating back to 1997

Ad-free Reading

  • Uninterrupted reading experience with no advertisements

Seamless Access Across All Devices

  • Access Business Standard across devices — mobile, tablet, or PC, via web or app

More From This Section

First Published: Sep 14 2015 | 6:57 PM IST