GST rate on bamboo and cane reduced to 12 %

GUWAHATI, Nov 10: The Goods and Services Tax (GST) council has agreed to reduce tax rate on bamboo and cane furniture from 18% to 12 % in its 23rd meeting held at Guwahati on Friday.
The reduction in tax rate was taken after a proposal from the Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein.
Mein, who is also a member of GST Council said bamboo is an intrinsic part of the social fabric and tribal way of living in Arunachal Pradesh.
Informing that bamboo was also exempted in the VAT regime, he said with the implementation of GST and levying tax @ 5% on bamboo and 18% on bamboo and cane furniture, the local industry has been badly affected and local people have an apprehension that it would affect their livelihood too, he said.
Mein requested the GST Council to exempt raw bamboo and cane and reduce the tax to 12% from 18% on bamboo and cane furniture to save the poor people of Arunachal Pradesh.
Meanwhile, the GST Council today decided to reduce tax rate on a wide range of mass use items – from chewing gums to detergents — to 18 per cent from current 28 per cent, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi said.
The all-powerful council pruned the list of items attracting the top 28 per cent tax rate to just 50 from 227 previously, Modi told reporters here.
In effect, the council, in its 23rd meet today, cut rates on 177 goods.
Facing intense heat from opposition-ruled states over keeping mass used goods in the 28 per cent bracket which was meant for luxury and de-merit goods, the Council pruned the list to 50 as against 62 that was recommended by its fitment committee.
The Goods and Services Tax (GST), implemented “from July 1, has five tax slabs of 0 per cent, 5 per cent, 12 per cent, 18 per cent and 28 per cent. (PTI)