GST Council meeting on September 17, rates will be reviewed on goods related to Kovid-19

GST Council Meeting: The meeting of the GST Council led by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will be held in Lucknow on September 17. In this meeting, among other things, concessional rates on essential goods related to Kovid-19 can be reviewed. The Finance Ministry tweeted on Wednesday that the Finance Minister will preside over the 45th meeting of the GST Council in Lucknow on September 17.

The last meeting of the GST Council was held on June 12 through video conferencing. In this, the tax rates on materials related to Kovid-19 were reduced till 30 September.

The goods and services tax (GST) rates were cut on COVID-19 drugs remdesivir and tocilizumab, besides medical oxygen and oxygen concentrators. In the meeting of the Council to be held on September 17, compensation to the states on revenue loss, rates on goods related to Kovid-19 and reverse duty structure on some items can be considered.

GST collection in August at 1.12 lakh crore

Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections stood at over Rs 1.12 lakh crore in August, giving a strong indication of a pick-up in economic activity. The Finance Ministry on Wednesday released the GST collection figures for the month of August. It registered an increase of more than 30 percent as compared to the month of August a year ago. Significantly, the GST collection has been more than one lakh crore rupees for the second consecutive month.

The Finance Ministry said in a statement, “The Gross GST revenue in August 2021 has been Rs 1,12,020 crore, which includes Rs 20,522 crore of Central GST, Rs 26,605 crore of State GST, Rs 56,247 crore of Integrated GST (on import of goods). 26,884 crore collected) and Rs 8,646 crore of cess (including Rs 646 crore received on import of goods).

However, the amount raised in August has been less than Rs 1.16 lakh crore in July 2021. GST revenue in August 2021 is 30 percent higher than the corresponding month of last year. In August last year, the GST collection stood at Rs 86,449 crore. At the same time, the GST collection in August 2019 was Rs 98,202 crore.