The Hindu Business Line : `Cut in CST only after Finance Bill passage'

THE proposed cut in Central sales tax (CST) from four per cent to two per cent will come into force only after the Finance Bill, 2003 is passed by Parliament, a senior Finance Ministry official said on Wednesday.

In his Budget speech, the Finance Minister, Mr Jaswant Singh, had said that the reduction in CST would be effective "from a date to be notified".

Addressing a seminar on value-added tax (VAT) organised by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Phdcci), Mr Anupam Dasgupta, Additional Secretary (Revenue), Ministry of Finance, said that the CST reduction can be notified only after the Finance Bill is passed.

He also said that the Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers on VAT are to meet on April 8 to discuss some of the issues of concern to trade and industry, including the one relating to the refund system which has been agitating Indian industry, particularly the exporting community.

The Finance Ministry official also expressed hope that most of the State Governments would be able to pass the VAT Bills in their legislative assemblies in the next few days.

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