The Cabinet Secretary, Government of India, P.K. Sinha has asked the Secretaries of the different Ministries/Departments to set-up a Goods and Service Tax (GST) Facilitation Cell in their respective Department/Ministry.

Sinha said that the Cell, in turn, shall be in constant touch with the major industry and business associations relating to the respective Ministry/Department and provide all possible support for the smooth roll-out of GST w.e.f. 1st July, 2017. The Cabinet Secretary in a letter to the Secretaries of the different Ministries/Departments has further mentioned that the GST Facilitation Cell can preferably be managed by a small core team headed by the Economic Adviser or any other designated officer of the respective Ministry/Department.

He said while the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance is making the Help lines operational for any individual tax payer to seek resolution of any legal or IT related issues, the GST Facilitation Cell, on the other hand, could serve as the first point of contact for addressing any issue being faced by any business or industrial sector related to the respective Ministry. The Cabinet Secretary further added that this would greatly facilitate the roll-out of GST.

The Cabinet Secretary in his letter to the Secretaries of the different Ministries/Departments has also asked them to ensure that all Public Sector Units (PSUs) under the administrative control of their respective Ministry/Department are GST Compliant before 1st July, 2017.

He asked the Secretaries to have meeting(s) with all the CMDs/Chair Persons of the PSUs, if any, under their charge in order to sensitize them towards GST roll-out. The Cabinet Secretary further added that preferably each PSU may constitute a GST Cell, which, in turn, should be fully equipped with the complete knowledge of all the relevant GST Act/Rules/Rate Structure etc.

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