In a welcome move, the Goods and Services (GST) council on Saturday proposed to slash the GST rates of all-electric vehicles from 12 to 5 percent. Applauding the council, Power Minister RK Singh said this step will be significant in promoting the sales of electric vehicles and accomplishing pollution-free cities.
As per reports, Singh asserted, “I welcome this decision by the GST council. It will go a long way in promoting electric vehicles in India and making our cities pollution-free.”
Besides, the council also recommended a reduction in GST rate for chargers and charging stations from 18 to 5 percent. The council also recommended that hiring of electric buses with a seating capacity of 12 passengers by local authorities or more should be exempted from GST purview.
The council meeting was presided over by GST Council Chairperson and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. As per the official statement, the proposed changes will come into effect from August 1.
India is grappling under the menace of pollution and various measures have been taken to reduce the effects of the same. Pollution poses a serious threat and is responsible as the root cause of various life-threatening disease.
The Supreme Court on March 12, 2019, had questioned the reason for people seeking a ban on firecrackers suggesting that automobiles appeared to cause more pollution. It had directed the government to submit a comparative study on the matter.
In a bid to curtail the rising pollution, the apex court had, last year, imposed a ban on firecrackers triggering a sharp response from the citizens.
In a bid to keep the check on rising pollution, India is aggressively pushing electric vehicles and take a big leap in the emerging industry. With an eye on containing pollution, the government intends to have only electric three-wheelers running on the roads by the year 2023 and only electric two-wheelers by 2025.