Hyderabad: Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao said that people were divided in their views on the GST slabs, because of which the Centre was receiving objections over a month after it came into force.
He said that the success of the GST would depend on how well the concerns were addressed by the Centre. He said several countries tried to implement the GST but had to retract due to problems.
Mr Rao spoke about the GST at a meeting held in Pragathi Bhavan on Monday. His comments are significant against the backdrop of his decision to approach the Supreme Court to prevent the imposition of GST on the work contracts of projects launched prior to the GST regime.
Mr Rao has been asking the Centre to announce exemptions or reduce the GST rates applicable to projects of public importance such as Mission Bhagiratha, Mission Kakatiya, the 2BHK housing scheme, irrigation and power projects. He has decided to write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on these issues and adopt a legal course of action based on the Prime Minister’s response. Mr Rao will hold a meeting with high-level ministers and officials, on Tuesday, to discuss the impact of GST on the work contracts before he finalises the contents of his letter to Mr Modi.
On Sunday, Mr Rao discussed the issue with officials over the course of several hours and estimated that the TS government would face an additional burden of nearly Rs 19,500 crore on account of the imposition of GST on ongoing projects.
Speaking about irrigation, he said that there was plenty of water available in the Godavari and the Krishna, which, if utilised properly, would benefit both TS and Andhra Pradesh.
