The government may soon relax the personal income tax burden: Report

On Saturday, Nirmala Sitharaman the Finance Minister hinted that the government might soon relax the personal income tax burden to boost the declining consumption, as per a report by Mint.

"(A cut in personal income tax) One among the many things we are looking at," the Finance Minister said at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit 2019 in the national capital.

The move is expected to help recover the sagging economy. The country's GDP growth collapsed to 4.5 per cent in the second quarter, which is more than a six-year low, in the first quarter it was recorded 5 per cent.

The Union Budget for FY21 will be presented in February. Answering to a question on how soon one can respite on personal income tax, Nirmala Sitharaman said, "Wait for the Budget".

During August and September, the government has taken several measures to boost the economy, she said at the HT Leadership Summit here. She also said, the public sector banks have disbursed almost Rs 5 lakh crore in the last two months to boost consumption in the hinterland.

She said, "So there are ways for giving stimulus for consumption. We are adopting a direct method and also the method through which we are spending on infrastructure, whose spillover can go to core industries and so on."

When questioned if there could be more measures announced to bolster economic activity, she said, the government is working on more.

On the GST (Goods and Services Tax), the Minister said the rate structure would have to be decided by the GST Council. Eventually, the rates have to be rationalised, she further added.

With inputs from PTI