The introduction of an electronic way bill (or e-way bill) will alter dramatically the economics of moving goods within the country, according to Srinivas Acharya, managing director of Sundaram BNP Paribas Home Finance Ltd.
In a free-wheeling interview with The Hindu here on Saturday, he felt that the e-way bill might yet prove a game-changer in very many ways.
He expected the e-way bill to facilitate faster movement of goods since check-posts would disappear in the wake ushering in of GST (goods and services tax) from midnight on Friday. “This will significantly speed up the time for transport operators,” he said. “This is by far the most perceptible benefits of the e-way bill.”
The introduction of GST and the e-way bill in its wake should, on a rough estimate, add immediately 200 km of travel for a truck in a day from the current 400 km. “Soon enough, I expect the trucks to cover 800 km in a day, which will be double of what has been covered currently. GST will bring dignity to the driver’s profession. Safe driving and lesser accidents will be by-products of GST,” he said.
Giving a broader sense of the likely beneficial fallout of e-way bill, Mr. Acharya said that a driver “could now drive 400 km one way and do a return distance of 400 km by another truck on the same day so as to return to his place of residence on the same day.” This would be a great source of motivation for drivers, he said.
“GST is not just about reduction of tax. It is about efficient usage of raw materials which will result in significant savings. If I now know the exact amount of time taken to reach the destination (because of doing away with check-posts), I would carry only the right quantity of materials unlike in the past where I always had doubts on the timeline of reaching a destination because of the various problems in between,” he said.
GDP forecast
At another level, he felt that GST would make GDP forecast for more credible.
“Every transaction is likely to get accounted under the GST regime. Every trader will have to account for the purchase and sale. This will make for a more credible GDP figure,” he said. “Also, cascading of tax at different points will be less because of input tax credit. And, all the input tax credit cannot be falsified. This will drive towards better discipline, genuineness and transparency,” he said.
To a question, he said that the real estate sector had faced a number of challenges. The unapproved land issue in Tamil Nadu, the short-term negative impact of demonetisation, the poor understanding of RERA (Real Estate Regulation Act) – the sector was grappling with too many things.
“All of these have resulted in a temporary setback for the industry. Real estate sector has to reorganise itself in line with the RERA requirements. With the implementation of RERA, that contains some harsh measures, many small-time builders could disappear or they could merge with the larger ones. Choice will then be between the few big builders,” he said. In the longer-term, RERA would bring lot of confidence to buyers in terms of discipline. GST could result in a price increase in the housing sector, he said. Nevertheless, he admitted that there could be a buyer resistance.
