Amaravati, Sep 4 (IANS) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu hailed the Goods and Services Tax (GST) reforms approved by the GST Council as “pro-poor” and “growth-oriented”.

The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) President took to X to welcome the announcement made by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday night after the GST Council meeting.

“We welcome the GST reforms with revised slabs across daily essentials, education, healthcare, and agriculture. This pro-poor, growth-oriented decision will benefit all sections of society, from farmers to businesses,” posted Chandrababu Naidu, a key partner in the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre.

“I congratulate Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji and Union Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman Ji on this transformative step. As announced by PM Modi Ji on Independence Day, these next-generation GST reforms mark a strategic and citizen-centric advancement of our tax framework, ensuring a better quality of life for every Indian,” said Naidu.

The reforms left only two GST slabs — 5 and 18 per cent. The new structure will be implemented from September 22.

Sitharaman announced the sweeping GST rate cuts after the 56th meeting of the GST Council in New Delhi.

With the majority of items coming in 5 and 18 per cent slabs and several items facing zero per cent tax, this is expected to help the common man save money. This, the government hopes, will be routed into the economy, giving it a significant boost and having a revenue implication of Rs 48,000 crore.

“These reforms have a multi-sectoral and multi-thematic focus, aimed at ensuring ease of living for all citizens and ease of doing business for all,” said Sitharaman.

Earlier, the Andhra Pradesh government extended full support to next-generation GST reforms.

Participating in the GST Council meeting, State Finance Minister Payyavula Keshav stated that the State government fully supports the reforms proposed by the Centre. He called it a measure taken in the best interest of the ‘poorest of the poor.’

Keshav said the reforms were in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day announcement of a “Diwali gift” for the people.

“As an alliance partner, the Andhra Pradesh government supports these reforms in the GST sector being proposed by the Government of India. Most of them are aimed at helping the common man and the poorest of the poor. They cover critical sectors such as food, education, health, steel, cement, and textiles,” Minister Keshav said.

–IANS

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