17.8.16

Bihar adopts GST

Bihar became the first non-NDA state to ratify the Constitutional Amendment Bill on Goods and Services Tax (GST) on Tuesday as the state assembly approved the major tax reform.
The bill passed by Parliament early this month needs to be ratified by at least 15 state legislatures before the President can notify a GST Council which will decide the new tax rate and sort out other issues.Bihar is also the second state, after BJP-ruled Assam, to ratify the bill. All major parties in Bihar -including the ruling troika of JD(U), RJD and Congress supported the bill.CPI-ML MLA Mehboob Alam opposed it and walked out.
For years, political infighting held up the bill, which has been viewed as the single biggest tax reform since Independence. The new regime would harmonize state and central levies into a national sales tax.
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar said he had been supporting GST since 2006. “...it is beneficial for a consumer state like Bihar,“ he said, adding it would bring transparency in tax collection and distribution among the Centre and states.

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