Within days of the implementation of Goods and Services Tax (GST), as many as 22 states have abolished commercial check-posts at state borders to ensure smooth movement of trucks across states.
The states that have abolished the check-posts are Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Delhi, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar, Gujarat, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Telangana, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim and Puducherry.
According to a Finance Ministry statement, eight more states are in the process of removing the commercial check-posts. The states are Punjab, Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Mizoram and Tripura.
These check-posts used to scrutinise goods for location-based tax compliance before GST came into effect. In the process, the trucks had to queue up for hours to get clearance to move to their destinations. This was resulting in delay in transporting and delivering goods, which in turn was impacting the economy. With the abolition of check-posts, there would be smooth movements of goods across the country.
The GST, which came into effect from July 1, aims at making India a single market where goods and services can flow seamlessly. The GST has removed as many as 17 different taxes including entry tax, octroi tax and central sales tax (CST).
Top government officials had earlier met yesterday to review the implementation of the new tax regime and its impact on the consumers. The stock taking meeting was chaired by Cabinet Secretary PK Sinha. Revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia, secretaries of 30 key departments, and senior members of Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) among others attended the meeting.
A similar review meeting will be held every week to keep a close watch on the GST rollout.
