High-level panel to hold 1st meeting on tomorrow

New Delhi: A high-level panel constituted by the government to suggest measures to augment GST revenue collection will hold its first meeting on Tuesday, a senior official said.

The government last week constituted the panel of officers to suggest steps to expand tax base and check evasion in the backdrop of falling revenue collections under GST. Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections dropped sharply to a 19-month low in September to Rs 91,916 crore, reflecting the slowdown in the economy.

"The first meeting of the committee is scheduled to be held on Tuesday, October 15," GST Council Special Secretary Rajeev Rajan said.

The committee has been given 15 days' time to submit its report, he said. This is going to be the first comprehensive review of GST after it was rolled out on July 1, 2017.

The 12-member panel, comprising of state-level GST commissioners and central officials, has been asked to suggest urgent measures to arrest fall in tax revenues and steps to be taken to improve revenue collection.

"The committee should consider a wide range of reforms so that a comprehensive list of suggestions may emerge," an official order had said. The panel has been asked to look into "systemic changes in GST including checks and balances to prevent misuse."

It has also been tasked to suggest measures to improve voluntary compliance as well as policy measures and changes in law needed.

Its key mandate is to suggest "measures for expansion of tax base" and make recommendations on "improved compliance monitoring and anti-evasion measures using better data analytics," the order said.