Implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) has made a good progress in the first fortnight after its enforcement from the first of this month as about 90% of the previous Value Added Tax (VAT) regime customers have been brought under the new system.
Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, who complimented the commercial taxes department officials for the progress made so far at a review meeting on GST held here on Tuesday, asked the officials to complete registration of traders, VAT customers, under the GST by the month-end. Officials explained to the Chief Minister that out of the 2.16 lakh traders registered under VAT in the past, 1.92 lakh had integrated their operations with the new tax regime and secured new tax registration numbers.
Telangana was among the very few States which had achieved such a progress in a short span of time, the Chief Minister said, and added that this was possible with officials meeting traders personally and bringing them under the new tax regime.
The Chief Minister said the State Government was still pursuing with the Centre for exemption or concession from GST for granite, textiles, beedi industry, works/projects taken for public utility. Levying GST on these activities would adversely impact the people depending on them, Mr. Chandrasekhar Rao said.
The excise and commercial taxes departments had adopted a multi-pronged approach to explain and allay apprehensions among both traders and people.
, Meetings were also being organised for real estate, IT, financial companies, hotel owners, catering sector, commission agents, textile traders, petty, retail and wholesale traders. A toll-free number, 18004253787, was set up to clear doubts.
