GST’s complicated
With collections from the goods and services tax peaking at over ₹1 lakh crore in April, industry hoped the GST Council would make life simpler for an increasingly(तेजी से/विस्तार से) compliant tax-payer base. Indeed, at its meeting last week the Council decided to introduce a new compliance(अनुमति/पालन) system under which a single monthly GST return will have to be submitted by firms, barring a few exceptions. However, this will only be done in a phased manner — with the first of three transition stages to begin six months from now. Discussions(बहस/विचार) over simplifying GST returns have been under way for months and considered by the Council, a committee of officers and a Group of Ministers. Nandan Nilekani, chairman of Infosys Technologies, the firm in charge of the GST Network’s IT system, has been consulted(परामर्श करना). Yet, the solution offered has gaps. For instance(उदाहरण के लिए,), in the second stage of the transition(गुज़रना/संक्रमण) to simpler returns, buyers will get provisional(अनंतिम) input credit even if the seller doesn’t upload the invoices(चालान). While this could lead to disputes(विवादों/मतभेद), in the third stage input credits will only be granted after sellers upload invoices. If a seller defaults on depositing(जमा करना) GST dues collected from a buyer and remains evasive(गोलमाल./टालने वाला), the authorities can reverse the credit availed(लाभ उठाया/उपयोगी होना) by the buyer for such outstanding taxes.
In any case, the timelines for the transition are long and bring fresh uncertainty(अनिश्चितता/संदेह) for businesses still recovering from the initial(प्रारंभिक/पहला) jitters(झटके/घबराना) and confusion around the tax regime(शासन). Firms will again have to cope with significant changes in accounting software in the middle of the financial year. The Council, credited withswift(तीव्र/शीघ्रगामी) and significant(महत्वपूर्ण/अर्थपूर्ण) course correction in GST processes in its initial months, could have done more. The most troubling(परेशान करना/चिंतित करना) is the Centre’s push for the imposition(लागू की गई वस्तु/टैक्स) of a cess on sugar over and above the 5% GST levied on it. A cess at the rate of ₹3 a kg is proposed to alleviate(कम करना/धीमा करना)‘deep distress’ among(बीच) sugarcane farmers(गन्ना किसानों ). Not surprisingly, this faces opposition from several States. It has been rightly argued(तर्क करना) that this will burden(बोझ/भार) consumers while favouring(सहायता देना) larger sugarcane-growing States like U.P. and Maharashtra. In addition, a special sugar cess will signal a looming breakdown of the basic tenet(मूल सिद्धांत) of GST: the abolition(उन्मूलन/समाप्ति) of such cesses and surcharges, barring(को छोड़कर/बिना) thecompensation(नुकसान भरपाई/मुआवजा) cess for funding States’ revenue losses for five years. Along with a proposal to reward digital GST payments, this has been referred(संदर्भित किया/उल्लिखित) to new ministerial groups, which are to revert(लौटाना/पूर्वस्थिति में लौटना) in a fortnight. Lastly, the decision to make the GSTN a 100% government-owned firm, instead of the present structure with 51% private ownership, explains neither how this will address data security concerns nor the impact on the Network’s functional efficiency(क्षमता/कार्य कुशलता), which was the original stated intent for giving private players an upper hand in operations.
Important Vocabulary
1.Consulted(परामर्श करना).
Synonyms: argue, brainstorm, call in, consider, deliberate
Antonyms: ignore, neglect, answer, reply
2.Disputes(विवादों/मतभेद),
Synonyms: bickering, brawl, conflict, controversy, debate
Antonyms: accord, agreement, calm, concord, concurrence
3.Evasive(गोलमाल./टालने वाला),
Synonyms: ambiguous, cagey, deceptive, false, misleading
Antonyms: clear, definite, honest, truthful, direct
4.Availed(लाभ उठाया/उपयोगी होना)
Synonyms: account, advantage, answer, benefit, fill
Antonyms: dissatisfy, fail, miss, take
5.Alleviate(कम करना/धीमा करना)
Synonyms: allay, assuage, ease, mitigate, lighten
Antonyms: increase, intensify, irritate, worsen, agitate
6.Troubling(परेशान करना/चिंतित करना)
Synonyms: afflict, agitate, annoy, burden, concern, Antonyms:
Antonyms: aid, assist, calm, comfort, delight
7.Abolition(उन्मूलन/समाप्ति
Synonyms: abolishment, abrogation, annulment, cancellation, destruction
Antonyms: approval, beginning, construction, enactment, restoration
8.Compensation(नुकसान भरपाई/मुआवजा)
Synonyms: allowance, benefit, bonus, coverage, earnings
Antonyms: debt, hurt, loss, penalty, damage
9.Jitters(झटके/घबराना)
Synonyms: anxiety, dither, fidgets, heebie-jeebies, jumps
Antonyms: calmness
10.Transition(गुज़रना/संक्रमण)
Synonyms: changeover, conversion, development, evolution, growth
Antonyms: decline, decrease, idleness, sameness, stagnation
