The passage of the GST or goods and services tax is crucial for the economy and is beyond politics, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan told NDTV's Prannoy Roy.
"This is beyond politics, this is about stabilising and ensuring growth going forward," Dr Rajan said.
The GST which seeks to transform the country into a common market, by merging a slew of state and central levies into a national sales tax has been touted as India's biggest tax reform since independence.
However, lack of political consensus has been keeping the government from pushing through its proposal for India's biggest tax shake-up.
"This is something the government is already trying very hard to do but I think passing GST would be such a strong signal not just to the domestic economy but to the global economy that we are willing to overcome whatever difficulties, whatever differences there are," Dr Rajan said. (Watch the full interview)
The GST bill has been cleared by the Lok Sabha or Lower House. The government has to ensure the bill clears the Upper House or Rajya Sabha, where it is in a minority. After that, the proposal has to be approved by more than half of the 29 states, a lengthy process.
"If they (government) can do GST I think it would send a huge signal, it would also buy us huge protection from external things," he said referring to the global volatility.
"We are passing through difficult times, we are a recovering economy but times aren't great, to send a signal like this would be fantastic," Dr Rajan opined.
For industry, the GST adds to ease of doing business, makes tax compliance simpler and boosts manufacturing by compelling states to be more competitive. For consumers, it is intended, in the long run, to reduce prices with more efficient delivery of goods and services.
The passage of the GST or goods and services tax is crucial for the economy and is beyond politics, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan told NDTV's Prannoy Roy.
"This is beyond politics, this is about stabilising and ensuring growth going forward," Dr Rajan said.
The GST which seeks to transform the country into a common market, by merging a slew of state and central levies into a national sales tax has been touted as India's biggest tax reform since independence.
However, lack of political consensus has been keeping the government from pushing through its proposal for India's biggest tax shake-up.
"This is something the government is already trying very hard to do but I think passing GST would be such a strong signal not just to the domestic economy but to the global economy that we are willing to overcome whatever difficulties, whatever differences there are," Dr Rajan said. (Watch the full interview)
The GST bill has been cleared by the Lok Sabha or Lower House. The government has to ensure the bill clears the Upper House or Rajya Sabha, where it is in a minority. After that, the proposal has to be approved by more than half of the 29 states, a lengthy process.
"If they (government) can do GST I think it would send a huge signal, it would also buy us huge protection from external things," he said referring to the global volatility.
"We are passing through difficult times, we are a recovering economy but times aren't great, to send a signal like this would be fantastic," Dr Rajan opined.
For industry, the GST adds to ease of doing business, makes tax compliance simpler and boosts manufacturing by compelling states to be more competitive. For consumers, it is intended, in the long run, to reduce prices with more efficient delivery of goods and services.
The passage of the GST or goods and services tax is crucial for the economy and is beyond politics, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan told NDTV's Prannoy Roy.
"This is beyond politics, this is about stabilising and ensuring growth going forward," Dr Rajan said.
The GST which seeks to transform the country into a common market, by merging a slew of state and central levies into a national sales tax has been touted as India's biggest tax reform since independence.
However, lack of political consensus has been keeping the government from pushing through its proposal for India's biggest tax shake-up.
"This is something the government is already trying very hard to do but I think passing GST would be such a strong signal not just to the domestic economy but to the global economy that we are willing to overcome whatever difficulties, whatever differences there are," Dr Rajan said. (Watch the full interview)
The GST bill has been cleared by the Lok Sabha or Lower House. The government has to ensure the bill clears the Upper House or Rajya Sabha, where it is in a minority. After that, the proposal has to be approved by more than half of the 29 states, a lengthy process.
"If they (government) can do GST I think it would send a huge signal, it would also buy us huge protection from external things," he said referring to the global volatility.
"We are passing through difficult times, we are a recovering economy but times aren't great, to send a signal like this would be fantastic," Dr Rajan opined.
For industry, the GST adds to ease of doing business, makes tax compliance simpler and boosts manufacturing by compelling states to be more competitive. For consumers, it is intended, in the long run, to reduce prices with more efficient delivery of goods and services.
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