GST: Govt taking steps to boost consumption: Nirmala Sitharaman

Taking into consideration the push needed to boost consumption, Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the govt is making sure steps are taken to improve consumption and put money in the hands of the consumer.

She was speaking at the India Economic Conclave organised by the Times Network.

To achieve that goal, the government is working to give a push to schemes like MGNREGA and PM Kisan to put money into the hands of the consumer.

She said that the government has expedited payments to those who have rendered services especially the MSME sector.

She said that the government is making all efforts to take India to the $5 trillion GDP goal.

On the likelihood of a GST rejig, she dismissed the reports saying that the buzz is everywhere except her office. She specifically said that on the issue of GST slabs rejig, there hasn’t been enough discussion even in the finance ministry itself.

She acknowledged that the growth in the GST collection is not as much as the government wanted it to be. She listed out the extension given to flood-affected states on filing returns and the slowdown in consumption in certain sectors as reasons for the shortfall in collection.

She said that both the centre and the states are working together to augment revenue collection.