Srinagar: Food grains, cereals and milk will cost less from July 1 when the Goods and Services Tax (GST) is rolled out as the GST Council on Thursday decided to exempt these daily-use commodities from the levy.
Milk, eggs, salt, fresh vegetables, fruits, contraceptives, organic manure, earthen pots, coconut, prasadam supplied by religious places like temples, mosques, churches, gurudwaras and dargahs have been exempted under GST.
Live animals, fruit juices and meat will call for a 12 per cent tax while fish has been put in the 5 per cent tax rate.
Butter and cheese have been placed under the 12 per cent tax rate and condensed milk under 18 per cent.
Beverages such as coffee (not instant), tea and groundnut, coal, hand pumps will attract 5 per cent tax under GST.
While jaggery is exempt under GST, cane sugar and beet sugar are in the 5 per cent tax slab. Bio gas plant, wind mills and kerosene lantern will also be under the 5 per cent tax rate.
Mobile phones, fountain pen ink, tooth powder, incense sticks, feeding bottles, Braille paper, children’s colouring books, umbrellas, pencil sharpeners, tractors, bicycles, contact lenses, spectacle lenses, utensils, sports goods, fishing rods, combs, pencils and hand paintings have been placed under the 12 per cent tax rate under GST.
Bindi, vermilion, glass bangles, handlooms, hearing aids and handmade musical instruments have also been exempt under GST.
The goods which will fall under 18 per cent tax rate include helmets, LPG stoves, nuclear reactors, clocks, military weapons, electronic toys and plastic buttons.
The items which have been put in the highest tax slab of 28 per cent include aerated drinks, perfumes, after-shave lotions, deodarants, clothing of furskin, razor blades, cars, revolvers, pistols.
Seven per cent of the items fall under the exempt list while 14 per cent have been put in the lowest tax bracket of 5 per cent. Another 17 per cent items are in 12 per cent tax bracket, 43 per cent in 18 per cent tax slab and only 19 per cent of goods fall in the top tax bracket of 28 per cent.
As many as 81 per cent of the items will attract 18 per cent or less GST.
On gold, states demanded a 4 per cent tax even though the rate is not among the 5, 12, 18 and 28 per cent approved bands.
ACs and refrigerators will fall in the 28 per cent tax slab while life saving drugs have been kept at 5 per cent rate.
Jaitley said there will be no inflationary impact as most of the rates which are at 31 per cent have been brought down to 28 per cent.
Coal will attract GST of 5 per cent as against the current tax incidence of 11.69 per cent.
The rate structure for the remaining goods — bidi wrapper leaves, biscuits, bidis, textiles, footwear, natural or cultured pearls, precious or semi-precious stones, precious metals, imitation jewellery, power driven agricultural, horticultural, forestry, poultry keeping or bee-keeping machinery and harvesting machinery is expected to be decided on Friday in the GST Council’s meeting on the second day in Srinagar.