GoM on incentivising digital payments under GST to meet on May 11

Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi-led ministerial panel on incentivising digital payments under GST will meet on May 11 to assuage concerns expressed by some states, especially West Bengal.

To incentivise digital transaction, the GST Council had last week discussed giving a concession of 2 per cent in GST rate (where the tax rate is 3 per cent or more) to consumers making payment through cheque or digital mode. The ceiling for the discount would be capped at Rs 100 per transaction.

While most of the states in the GST Council were agreeable to the proposal, West Bengal had voiced concerns saying that the poor people will suffer because they still find cash as a viable mode for transaction, an official said.

"While 98 per cent of the states supported the idea, West Bengal opposed to it saying the poor would suffer. We will discuss the concerns and hope to achieve a consensus in the May 11 meeting," the official added.

The Modi-led Group of Ministers (GoM) has been tasked with submitting its report to the GST Council, chaired by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and comprising his state counterparts, within 15 days.

The five member GoM include Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Nitinbhai Patel, West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra, Haryana Excise & Taxation Minister Capt Abhimanyu and Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal.

Jaitley, after the GST Council meet last week, had said that while most states were agreeable to the proposal of giving a concession in GST rate, some states wanted a small negative list.