Will soon call first meeting of GoM set up to review GST rates: CM Basavaraj Bommai
New Delhi, Oct 8: The first meeting of the Group of Ministers set up for rationalising GST rates and to shore up revenue will be held soon, its chairman and Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said on Friday after meeting with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
"Very soon, I will call the first meeting of GoM. I met her (Finance Minister) in this backdrop," Bommai told reporters after the meeting.
The Group of Ministers (GoM) has to submit a report in the next two months, Bommai said, adding he discussed important issues related to rationalisation of Goods and Services Tax (GST) taxes and ways to increase revenue with the Union Minister.
Earlier, Bommai was to meet the finance minister late in the evening. However, the meeting was advanced.
In September, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council had decided to set up two Groups of Ministers (GoMs) to shore up revenues.
Bommai's seven-member group constituted by the Finance Ministry includes West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra and Kerala Finance Minister K N Balagopal, as well as GST Council members from Goa, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Asked if the centre has released the pending GST compensation to Karnataka, the chief minister said it has been cleared till 2019-20 fiscal. For 2020-21 fiscal, the state was to get Rs 11,800 crore which is being released in phases.
For the current fiscal, the Centre has sanctioned GST compensation of Rs 18,000 crore via loan, he said, adding a higher amount was sanctioned as the state GST collection has improved when compared to the last year.
Besides GST, the chief minister also sought more support to Karnataka under programmes implemented by Nabard. "I have sought higher allocation to the state under one of Nabard's infrastructure schemes."
He also requested an increase in loan amount from the current Rs 1,500 crore given by Nabard for farmers and rural development.
Bommai said the Union Minister will visit the state and attend separate programmes of Nabard and SIDBI.
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Tumkur: 24-year-old rider killed in car-bike head-on collision in Tiptur
Tiptur: A 24-year-old rider was killed on the spot in a head-on collision between his motorbike and a car near Bidiregudi of Kasaba hobli in the taluk.
The deceased rider, Vijay Kumar, was a resident of BL Koppalu Basaveshwara Nagara in Kasaba hobli, Arsikere taluk.
He was reportedly returning home after work at a welding factory near TM Manjunath Nagar Gate, Tiptur, when a car coming from the opposite direction collided with his bike near Bidiregudi. Vijay Kumar is said to have died at the spot due to the impact of the collision.
Locals have blamed the lack of signboards and other precautionary measures amid the construction of a four-lane national highway in the area, mainly between Bidiregudi and Konehalli. They have said that the carelessness of the National Highway Authorities of India (NHAI) has led to frequent accidents in the region.
“A meeting of officers from various government departments, including the police, was held recently under the chairmanship of the local legislator, but several NHAI officials were reportedly absent. Despite the meeting, officials appear careless in implementing safety measures, leading to a rise in accidents,” the locals said, demanding immediate action from the concerned authorities.
