OUR CORRESPONDENT
ITANAGAR: Arunachal Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein on Friday said the state’s Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections have grown by more than 700 percent in six years, rising from Rs 227 crore in 2017-18 to nearly Rs 1,900 crore in 2023-24.
He attributed the growth to wider digital access, simplified registration processes and efforts to bring small businesses into the formal economy.
Speaking at a public programme in Namsai district, Mein said the number of registered taxpayers also rose significantly, from 7,365 in 2017 to 18,477 by mid-2025.
“These additional resources have been instrumental in building roads, expanding healthcare, improving education and funding welfare programmes,” he said.
With the rollout of next-generation GST reforms from September 22, Mein added, the state is better positioned to accelerate development and contribute to the national vision of Viksit Bharat 2047.
At the event themed “Ghati GST Mila Uphaar” (Reduced GST brings gifts), organised by BJP Namsai, Mein explained the reforms introduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and approved by the 56th GST Council chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
He called the changes ‘people’s reforms’, pointing out that cheaper essentials, medicines, farm machinery, handicrafts and tourism services would directly benefit households, farmers, artisans, youth, women entrepreneurs and small businesses.
The reforms include a simplified tax rate structure of 5 percent for merit goods, 18 percent for standard items and 40 percent for luxury or harmful products. Lower GST has been applied to packaged foods, bamboo products, health insurance, life-saving medicines, education materials, wellness services, and accommodation.
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