Overview

• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman convened representatives from the Confederation of Indian Industry and senior finance officials in New Delhi to discuss GST 2.0 reforms.
• The government is evaluating a shift from four GST slabs to three bands at 5%, 18%, and 28% to reduce disputes and improve compliance.
• Industry leaders pressed for the inclusion of petroleum products under the GST framework to eliminate cascading taxes and harmonize levies.
• The CII urged relaxations in input tax credit rules and the streamlining of audit procedures to ease working capital pressures for businesses.
• The GST Council is expected to consider rate rationalisation measures and the future of the compensation cess at its upcoming meeting.