States Need To Agree On Inclusion Of Petrol, Diesel In GST, Says Nirmala Sitharaman
Petrol and diesel are currently taxed under VAT rather than Goods and Services Tax, but Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has highlighted that the GST law already contains provisions for their inclusion.
She emphasised that for this transition to take place, states must unify and reach a consensus in the GST Council. "If they fix the rate and they all come together and decide that GST will include petroleum products, then we can implement it immediately,"
Sitharaman told NDTV Profit in an exclusive interview. She also said that the provisions necessary to include petroleum products under GST have already been made, and it is up to the GST Council to discuss and make the decision.
Presently, the rates of petrol vary from state to state depending on the local incidence of taxation. However, the states are not willing to include petroleum products under GST as it could lead to revenue losses for the states.
