New Delhi
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday said the Goods and Services Tax (GST) has begun to touch every part of daily life, offering benefits “from morning tea to dinner.” Speaking at an event in Chennai, she stressed that recent reforms are making essentials more affordable and businesses more confident.
Sitharaman noted that before GST, only 66 lakh businesses were in the tax system. Today, that number has grown to 1.5 crore, a rise she credited to simpler and transparent policies. Over the past eight months, the government has worked to simplify classifications so businesses face less confusion, she said.
One of the most significant changes, according to the minister, was shifting 99 percent of goods that were under the 12 percent tax slab to the 5 percent bracket. This, she said, directly reduces input costs for producers and helps lower prices for consumers. “The ease of the system has encouraged both distributors and manufacturers to participate more actively,” Sitharaman explained.
She added that the impact is visible in the growth of GST revenues, which have surged to Rs 22.08 lakh crore compared to Rs 7.18 lakh crore in 2018. This, she said, benefits not only the public but also state governments, which share in the revenue.
Sitharaman also addressed criticism, saying, “Some may have said I only know how to put people in trouble, but our effort is for the nation.” She reminded that all GST decisions were made collectively with state ministers through the GST Council.
According to her, the reforms mark a step toward making India’s tax system fairer, more inclusive, and more supportive of everyday needs.
