AAP initiatives to ensure GST implementation by April 1

The AAP government has taken a series of initiatives to ensure that Goods and Services Tax Bill is implemented from April 1 next year in the national capital. The Constitution Amendment on GST has already been passed by the Parliament and is in the process of getting ratified by the state Assemblies. Once 50 per cent of the state Assemblies pass the Constitution Amendment, the Centre will bring the Bill in the Parliament during the winter session.

While 30 officers of the city government have already received extensive training on implementation of GST, as many as 60 more officers will be trained from August 29. The training module of the officers is of three-level roll-out. The first set of 30 officers trained as master trainers by senior officers of the Union government will now impart training to 60 trainers, who in turn will be required to train field officers at the third level.

Since the Model GST law is already in place, Infosys has been engaged by the AAP government to develop a central system for its implementation in Delhi. A highly placed source said that the central system will be in place latest by February next year.

What is required for effective implementation of GST is that its rules should be clear, computers should be in place, adequate training is imparted to officers and traders are made aware of the new rules.

As consumer states are bound to gain more revenue from GST, manufacturing states like Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Maharashtra are likely to lose from the new law. A senior officer said that Delhi was all set to gain from GST because any purchase made by the Central government will add on to the coffers of the state revenue. But the only loss that Delhi is going to suffer is to the tune of '2,000 crore on account of central taxes.

The officer said that Delhi was already heading towards achieving its '20,000 crore target through Value Added Tax collections. “In case we fail to meet the set target, the Centre will fund us for another five years,” he said.

Asked whether the Delhi Assembly will ratify the Constitution Amendment on GST, a seasoned bureaucrat said that states enjoying full statehood are bound to ratify it. “Since we are a union territory, once the empowered committee meeting clears the Model GST, we will customise it for our state before we table it in the Delhi Assembly.”

Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia had himself said that his government was taking all the necessary steps to implement the GST. He had told the empowered committee of finance ministers that Delhi has adopted Model 2 for implementation of IT Services under the Goods and Services Tax Network. “Delhi already has fully computerised DVAT system and is prepared for its integration with GSTN as soon as the new system is ready. I expect that the entire IT system which is being developed by GSTN for the Model 2 states, including dash board, reports, back-end process, dealer integration module etc., will be ready well in time for smooth and swift transitions of GST.”

The AAP government’s consistent stand on the GST is that the state administration should have adequate financial and administrative autonomy to meet aspirations of the people and ensure rapid development. The city government had been pleading that the revenue neutral rate should be estimated on a realistic basis.