Gas and aviation fuel tax reform tests GST Council’s resolve
Fiscal pressures and rising energy import dependence add urgency to long-standing reform debate.
India’s GST Council convenes next week facing pressure to bring natural gas and aviation turbine fuel under its tax net — a decision that could reshape two critical sectors and offer relief from mounting fiscal pressures.
The September 3-4 meeting will examine whether to end the anomalous treatment of both fuels, which remain outside the goods and services tax framework. Currently subject to a patchwork of state VAT and central excise duties, the arrangement has created what industry executives describe as a compliance nightmare.
The timing couldn’t be more awkward. India’s energy import bill has climbed above $170bn annually with little sign of abating. With crude oil imports accounti...