Bengaluru: The recommendations of the 57th GST Council meeting, held on October 8, were shaped through extensive consultations within the government and with states, and seek to address key process-related concerns raised by stakeholders, K Balasubramanian, Joint Secretary in the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, said on Monday.
Speaking virtually at an interactive session, “The GST Reset: What the 57th Council Means for Business”, organised by the Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce (BCIC), Balasubramanian said the Centre would now focus on implementing the Council's recommendations and work with states to ensure uniform adoption.
On calls for removing e-way bills, he said a working group of central and state officers had examined the issue in detail. E-way bill data, he said, supports logistics planning and also serves as a high-frequency input for economic forecasting and nowcasting by the Reserve Bank of India and statistical authorities.
At the same time, he acknowledged concerns over arbitrary interception of goods vehicles. The proposed reforms seek to address such practices by requiring specific intelligence inputs and approval from an officer not below the rank of Joint Commissioner before interception, while also restricting checks in transit states.
On Section 16(2)(c) of the GST law, which links a recipient's eligibility for input tax credit (ITC) to payment of tax by the supplier, Balasubramanian said the Council had referred the issue to an officers' committee, which has been asked to submit its recommendations within three months. He added that genuine taxpayers who have complied with statutory requirements should not face undue hardship.
The government is also pursuing wider reforms aimed at simplifying registration, refunds, dispute resolution and cancellation procedures alongside GST rate rationalisation. Balasubramanian cited around 26% growth in overall taxable supplies and business-to-consumer taxable supplies between October and August compared with the corresponding period a year earlier. GST revenue growth in the second quarter stood at around 15%, he said.
He stressed that successful implementation of the reforms would require close coordination between central and state tax administrations, with training programmes already being conducted and progress tracked through management information systems.
Addressing the session, N Venkataraman, Additional Solicitor General of India, said restrictions on ITC reflected legislative policy choices and could be revisited if supported by evidence. Blocking credit, he said, was an exception rather than the norm, while retrospective amendments had, in some instances, been introduced to benefit taxpayers facing difficulties with transitional credits.
CA K Ravi, President, BCIC, said simplifying compliance, improving policy clarity and facilitating seamless trade remained key priorities for the chamber.
BCIC said it had submitted 13 recommendations to improve GST implementation, seven of which were considered by the 57th GST Council. These included allowing ITC on employee insurance and removing interest liability on reversed ITC. The chamber said it would continue engaging with the government on issues such as SEZ refund applications, invoice endorsements and real estate valuation.
The discussion highlighted the need for continued government-industry collaboration to build a more trust-based, automated and simplified GST regime.