'It was Rigorous... but an Absolutely Rewarding Exercise'

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in an interview with Network18 Group's Editor-in-Chief Rahul Joshi, spoke on a range of issues. Here are edited excerpts about the recent changes to the Goods & Services Tax (GST)

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Q Let me begin with a broader question. What was the vision behind this? What did the prime minister tell you? How did it come about?

Well, the prime minister did announce it from the Red Fort on Independence Day. But about eight months ago, he called me and had a long talk about how GST can be... you know... revamped. Both from the point of view of the process and also for the common man, the tax rates... Is there a way in which we can make it simpler? I agreed that I will go into it and come back to him.

Then around the Budget, when we were talking about the many tax-related issues, he reminded me about the work which had to be done. And I assured him again that the work was progressing, and I'll come back. So, sometime after the Budget session of Parliament, I said I’m somewhere close to giving him a proposal, on which he can guide me further and so on. And then a bit later, much later, because, you know, the developments of May, when Operation Sindoor happened, the priorities have been on many different grounds. When the next opportunity came, I gave him a detailed description. He said, I just want, as I said at the first meeting, a simplified, not simplistic, way of doing business.

So, I don’t want small people, small businesses sitting at the computer, getting the auditor to do it. And also, like the way we did in the Budget, respecting the middle class, respecting the taxpayer, respecting people who are the ones paying tax out of their salaries. We need to do something for the day-to-day indirect tax, which falls on every Indian citizen in some way or the other. This tax is something that touches the lives of every citizen. And, therefore, we need to be a lot more sensitive. So, I went back with this comment. And that’s how this proposal came. And for the first time in GST’s history, Council’s history, the Centre came up with a proposal.