What is GST and how will it affect you? All your questions answered

Sixteen years in the making, India rolls out the Goods and Services Tax (GST) from July 1, 2017. The Narendra Modi-led government will inaugurate the new indirect tax at the stroke of midnight of June 30 in Parliament.

What is GST?

(Source: PIB)

The GST is meant to be a unified indirect tax across the country on products and services. In the current system, tax is levied at each stage separately by the Union government and the States at varying rates, on the full value of the goods. But under the GST system, tax will be levied only on the value added at each stage. It is a single tax (collected at multiple points) with a full set-off for taxes paid earlier in the value chain.

Thus, the final consumer will bear only the GST charged by the last dealer in the supply chain with set-off benefits at all the previous stages.

What is State GST and Central GST?

(Source: PIB)

For transactions within a State, there will be two components of GST - Central GST (CGST) and State GST (SGST) - levied on the value of goods and services. Both the Centre and the States will simultaneously levy GST across the value chain.

In the case of inter-State transactions, the Centre would levy and collect the Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST). The IGST would be roughly equal to CGST plus SGST.

Why was GST established?

(Source: PIB)

The GST was established to subsume various indirect taxes levied at different levels, with the idea of reducing red-tape, plugging leakages and paving the way for a transparent indirect tax regime.

How will GST affect the common man?

(Source: The Hindu)

The impact of the GST on the prices of goods and services will largely depend on the item in question. It will also depend upon the respective State governments and their intervention with respect to controlling prices of essential commodities. Milk, for example, which is likely to see a spike in prices after GST is implemented, can still be sold at cheaper rates, if the State government offers a subsidy on it.

How will GST help in getting rid of tax evasion?

(Source: The Hindu)

A comprehensive IT system, GSTN, will allot universal GST numbers (similar to PAN) to all manufacturers, traders, stockists, wholesalers and retailers. This will simplify the administration of indirect taxes and plug leakages. The government also plans to incentivise tax compliance by traders.

Whether the GST will be beneficial to the poor or not only time can tell. Prices of vegetables and fruits are likely to rise under the GST regime and services such as eating at restaurants will get more expensive. What will likely get cheaper are items such as clothes, as cascading taxes at various stages of manufacturing would no longer apply to them.

Is GST going to benefit people below the poverty line?

Answered by Grant Thornton India LLP


With respect to those living below the poverty line, there might not be a direct impact of the GST on them as such since basic necessities like food are unlikely to attract the GST but increased collections of the GST with a larger tax base should provide an impetus to the government to allocate more money for social and poverty alleviation programmes. Thus, the GST should benefit all sections of the society. Additionally, the GST, being a nationwide tax, could lead to possibly higher inflation in the first few years of its introduction but would gradually increase the overall GDP.

How will GST affect tax deductions of a salaried person?

(Source: The Hindu)

The GST is an indirect tax collected from customers who buy manufactured goods or services. So whether you are earning a salary or not, as long as you buy something, you’ll be paying tax.

Which are the items that could become costlier and which are those that could become cheaper?

Answered by Deloitte Haskins & Sells LLP


Broadly, services are expected to become costlier under the GST regime, as the expected GST rate would be higher than the existing service tax rate of 15%. Clearly, the GST is expected to bring down prices of indigenously manufactured goods on account of current effective indirect taxes (central excise @ 12.5%, State VAT @ 5%-15% etc.) being higher as compared to recommended lower GST rate @ 5% and standard GST rates @ 12% and 18%. Thus, price of certain category of goods may come down depending on the effective rate of indirect taxes being paid at present and the tax brackets under which goods are classified under the GST.

Source:The Hindu

What happens if you don't link Aadhaar with PAN

Today is the last date to link your Aadhaar with PAN card. While many are looking up for articles on how you should link your Aadhaar with PAN card, it is also important to know what happens if you do not do so.

Before proceeding further, you must read what the government notification says. "Every person who has been allotted permanent account number as on the 1st day of July 2017, and who in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (2) of section 139AA is required to intimate his Aadhaar number, shall intimate his Aadhaar number to the Principal Director General of Income-tax (Systems) or Director General of Income-tax (Systems) or the person authorised by the said authorities."

What happens if you don't link Aadhaar with PAN 

The Supreme Court said that if you do not have an Aadhaar card, there is no immediate cause for concern. Your PAN will not be cancelled. This is however only a partial relief. The CBTD said in a circular, " Only a partial relief by the court has been given to those who do not have Aadhaar and who do not wish to obtain Aadhaar for the time being, that their PAN will not be cancelled so that other consequences under the I-T Act for filing to quote PAN may not arise. 

Broadly this would mean that those who have both Aadhaar and PAN will have to link both. There is no relief provided for such persons.

You will eventually need to link Aadhaar with PAN 

Aadhaar has become mandatory for most services. Eventually you will have to get an Aadhaar card and quote your biometric number while filing your Income Tax returns. This would be necessary for those applying for PAN card or opening bank accounts.

Do you have to quote PAN Even if there is no PAN

Even if there is no PAN-Aadhaar linkage, the PAN number has to be quoted in all banking and financial transactions. Even if you are not required to file IT returns, but have both Aadhaar and PAN, you will still have to link both.

Get correction made

There have been several cases where people have not been able to link Aadhaar with PAN due to spelling errors in one of the cards. In such an event you must get the same corrected depending on which card has the mistake. For spelling mistake in the PAN card you can visit the National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL) website. If the mistake is on the Aadhaar card, the you would have to visit the UIDAI (Aadhaar) portal.

Source:One India

IS leader Baghdadi ‘definitely dead’, says Iran state media

In this file image made from video posted on a militant website Saturday, July 5, 2014, purports to show the leader of the Islamic State group, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, delivering a sermon at a mosque in Iraq during his first public appearance.   | Photo Credit: AP

Iran’s state news agency quoted a representative of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday as saying Islamic State’s leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was “definitely dead”.

“Terrorist Baghdadi is definitely dead,” IRNA quoted cleric Ali Shirazi, representative to the Quds Force, as saying, without elaborating. IRNA later updated the news item, omitting the quote on Baghdadi’s death.

The Quds Force is in charge of operations outside Iran’s borders by the country’s elite Revolutionary Guard Corps. Iranian Foreign Ministry officials were not available to comment on the report of Baghdadi’s death.

The secretive Islamic State leader has frequently been reported killed or wounded since he declared a caliphate to rule over all Muslims from a mosque in Mosul in 2014, after his fighters seized large areas of northern Iraq.


Russia said on June 17 its forces might have killed Baghdadi in an air strike in Syria. Washington said on Thursday it had no information to corroborate such reports. Iraqi officials have also been sceptical in recent weeks.

Source:The Hindu

China's army tells India: Remember history and stop 'clamour' for war

The People's Liberation Army today delivered a strong warning to India, calling on the Indian Army to "learn from historical lessons and stop clamouring for war".

Amid an on-going stand-off in the Sikkim sector of the border, PLA spokesperson Wu Qian told reporters that Indian border personnel had "entered Chinese territory" and "tried to stop the normal activities of the Chinese border defence forces in the Donglang region". He called on India to "correct its wrongdoing and withdraw their personnel from the Chinese territory."

Colonel Wu also delivered a strong warning to India, when asked to comment on Army Chief General Bipin Rawat's comments on India being prepared for the scenario of a two-front war.

"Such rhetoric is extremely irresponsible," Colonel Wu said. "We hope the particular person in the Indian Army could learn from historical lessons and stop such clamouring for war."

Chinese media have also pointed out that the PLA has carried out an exercise in Tibet involving "a new type of 35 ton light tank". A journalist asked Colonel Wu if the tank was aimed at India. He confirmed "a type of tank undertook trials" on the plateau. "The purpose of it is to test the parameters of the equipment and is not targeted against any country".

Separately on Thursday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry stepped up its claims that India had "transgressed" the border. The incident, China says, is in Donglang or the Doklam plateau which Beijing claims but it is seen by India and Bhutan as Bhutanese territory.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang even held up photographs at a daily briefing saying they "proved" India had trespassed, and said the India-China border at Sikkim had a clear legal basis since the 1890 treaty between China and Britain.  "It is an undeniable fact that Indian troops have trespassed the boundary," he said.

"We urge the Indian side to to withdraw troops back to the Indian side of the boundary. This is the precondition for the settlement of the incident and also the basis for us to conduct a meaningful dialogue."

He did not, however, address the issue of Bhutan issuing a demarche to protest Chinese road activities in Doklam, which triggered the stand-off with Indian troops opposing the construction activities.

Source:India Today

Iraqi forces take Mosul’s al-Nuri mosque blown up by Islamic State

Aerial view of the destroyed al-Nuri mosque during fighting between Iraqi security forces and Islamic State militants in the Old City of Mosul on June 28, 2017.   | Photo Credit: AP

Iraqi government troops on Thursday captured the mosque in Mosul from where Islamic State proclaimed its self-styled caliphate three years ago, the Iraqi military said.

Seizing the 850 year-old Grand al-Nuri Mosque hands a symbolic victory to the Iraqi forces who have been battling for more than eight months to recapture Mosul, the northern city that served as Islamic State's de facto capital in Iraq.

“Their fictitious state has fallen,” an Iraqi military spokesman, Brigadier General Yahya Rasool, told state TV.

Insurgents blew up the medieval mosque and its famed leaning minaret a week ago as U.S.-backed Iraqi forces started a push in its direction. Their black flag was flying from al-Hadba (The Hunchback) minaret, since June 2014.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi “issued instructions to bring the battle to its conclusion,” his office said on Wednesday.

Lt. Gen. Abdul Wahab al-Saadi said special forces entered the compound and took control of the surrounding streets on June 29 afternoon, following a dawn push into the area.

Earlier, special forces Maj. Gen. Sami al-Aridi warned the site would need to be cleared by engineering teams as Islamic State fighters likely rigged it with explosives.

Iraqi authorities expect the battle to end in the coming days as the Islamic State has been bottled up in a handful of neighborhoods of the Old City.

The mosque is symbolic as it was from its pulpit, IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared in July 2014 a self-styled “caliphate” on IS-held territories in Syria and Iraq.

Source:The Hindu

Karun Nair, Manish Pandey to lead India ‘A’ squad in South Africa

Karun Nair has been named as the captain for two four-day Test matches against South Africa.

The all-India Senior Selection Committee announced India ‘A’ teams for the upcoming tour in South Africa, where India will play a one-day tri-series against Australia ‘A’ and South Africa ‘A’ followed by two Test matches against the Proteas.

After a tremendous performance with the bat and a triple ton against England, Karun Nair has been named as the captain for the longer format. Meanwhile, Manish Pandey, who suffered a side strain during the 2017 IPL, will captain India ‘A’ in the five ODIs.

Krunal Pandya and pacer Basil Thampi have earned maiden call-ups. Both players have been included in the 16-man one-day squad. Pandya and Thampi were in excellent form in the tenth edition of the Indian Premier League.

Rishabh Pant, who is currently with the senior team on their West Indies tour, will be keeping wickets in the limited over format while Jharkhand batsman Ishan Kishan will keep wickets for India ‘A’ in the Tests.

India ‘A’ squad for ODI: Mandeep Singh, Shreyas Iyer, Sanju Samson, Manish Pandey (Captain), Deepak Hooda, Karun Nair, Krunal Pandya, Rishabh Pant (wk), Vijay Shankar, Axar Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jayant Yadav, Basil Thampi, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Siddarth Kaul.

India ‘A’ squad for Tests: PK Panchal, Abhinav Mukund, Shreyas Iyer, Ankit Bawne, Karun Nair (Captain), Sudip Chatterjee, Ishan Kishan (wk), Hanuma Vihari, Jayant Yadav, Shahbaz Nadeem, Navdeep Saini, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Aniket Choudhary, Ankit Rajpoot.

Source:Indian Express

GST launch celebrations: It's official, Congress won't attend Parliament event tomorrow

The Congress won't attend the Goods and Services Tax (GST) launch celebrations which will be held tomorrow  in the Parliament, party leader Satyavrat Chaturvedi said.

It was earlier reported that Congress President Sonia Gandhi would meet former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today to decide whether her party would take part

Manmohan Singh was invited as a special guest - which meant he would share the dais with President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi- and the Congress found itself in a catch-22 situation.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress (TMC) and M Karunanidi's Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) have already boycotted the event.

MP TKS Elangovan, of the DMK, said his party "feels it is just another important legislation so why this show off."

The Nationalist Congress Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Janata Dal have called meetings of their respective party leaders on Thursday, to finalise their strategies.

Source:India Today

Vice President poll to be held on August 5

Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi addressing a press conference in New Delhi on Thursday.   | Photo Credit:

Election for the post of Vice President will be held on August 5, the Election Commission of India said on Thursday.

Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi said notification for the election would be issued on July 4 and nominations could be submitted by July 18.


The scrutiny would take place on July 19 and the last date for withdrawal of nomination is July 21. If polling is required, it would take place on August 5 and counting of votes would take place the same day. Members of Parliament would use special pens for marking their choice and no whip could be issued by political parties, Mr. Zaidi said.

No whip

Secretary General of the Rajya Sabha Shumsher K Sheriff would be the returning officer for the election, he said.

The term of incumbent Hamid Ansari, who has held the post for two consecutive terms, comes to an end on August 10.

The electoral college that elects the Vice President, who is also the ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, consists of elected and nominated members of the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha.


The total strength of the two Houses is 790, but there are some vacancies.

Source:The Hindu

Is Ravi Shastri India's next head coach?

Shastri has confirmed that he will apply for the position, which fell vacant following the resignation of Anil Kumble recently.

After the disappointment of last year, where Shastri lost out to Kumble in coach's race, the former is set to return with captain Virat Kohli favouring his selection.

Kohli had differences with Kumble and that resulted in the latter quitting his position. He was offered a one-year contract in 2016 and was given one-tour extension after the ICC Champoins Trophy 2017. However, Kumble, at the last minute, opted out of the trip to the Caribbean islands, saying that the relationship with captain was "untenable".

The 55-year-old Shastri, who was Team India's Director of Cricket for 18 months from August 2014, is being backed by Kohli. 

Both Kohli and Shastri enjoy a good relationship. In all likelihood Shastri is set to return as India's coaching set-up. 

During his stint as Team Director, Shastri guided the Indian side to 2015 World Cup semi-final in Australia and New Zealand and also to 2016 ICC World Twenty20 last-four stage at home. Under his guidance, the team also reached the top of the table in ICC Test Rankings. 

Last year, during the coach selection interviews, Shastri was unhappy that Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) member and former skipper Sourav Ganguly was not present to interview him. 

"Nothing surprises me in Indian cricket anymore. A member of the committee (Ganguly) wasn't present and that was disrespectful to the selection process,

" Shastri had said. Shastri was in Bangkok and gave his interview via a video conference. This was not liked by Ganguly, who said the former cricketer should have been in India and not "holidaying in Bangkok".

"I just feel his (Shastri) comments are very personal. If Ravi Shastri feels that Sourav Ganguly was responsible for him not being the India coach, he is living in a fool's world," Ganguly told "NDTV". 

"It angers me that he gave a suggestion that I should be available for such meetings. I have been a part of BCCI meetings for some time and I have always been available. My advice to Ravi is that when the coach of India is selected and one of the most important jobs, he should be in front of the committee and not sit in Bangkok and give a presentation while being on a holiday," Ganguly said. 

On June 23, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) reopened the process to select coach. July 9 is the last date to submit applications.

So far, Virender Sehwag, Tom Moody, Lalchand Rajput, Dodda Ganesh, Richard Pybus and Shastri are in the fray. 

CAC members Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman are set to interview the candidates and pick the new coach. 

Last time, it was reported that Tendulkar voted for Shastri and Laxman for Kumble. Finally, Ganguly took Kumble's side and the job went to the former legspinner. As of now, it is advantage Shastri.

Source:One India

Petya ransomware cyber attack: Here’s what cyber security experts have to say

Petya ransomware has affected many computers, networks of some global firms in what is being seen as a massive cyberattack. The Petya cyberattack comes soon after the WannaCry ransomware attack, which had impacted over 300,000 computers worldwide, including those in India.

For the Indian market, the Petya ransomware should come as specially worrying news given how dependent we are as a market on Windows XP (Representational Image. ThinkStock)

Petya ransomware has affected many computers, networks of some global firms in what is being seen as a massive cyber attack. The Petya cyber attack comes soon after the WannaCry ransomware attack, which had impacted over 300,000 computers worldwide, including those in India. With Petya, we know that one terminal in Mumbai’s Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust is currently out of action thanks to the attack on Dutch firm AP Moller-Maersk .The shipping giant controls one of the terminals.


The full impact of the cyber attack is yet to be assessed. Here’s what cyber security experts have to say on the Petya attack.

Petya ransomware and why it poses a danger to India

For the Indian market, the Petya ransomware should come as worrying news given how dependent we are as a market on Windows XP. According to Saket Modi, CEO and Co-founder of technology firm Lucideus, it is high time that enterprises looked at the issue of security updates seriously.

“Considering the number of open vulnerabilities in operating systems, not due to the unavailability of patches released by OEMs, but due to the unwillingness of companies to push the latest OS patches across their IT infrastructures, such attacks will only keep growing. If you take WannaCry as an example, it’s exploit has been in public since January and its patch (that was a free of cost update) released by Microsoft in March. Even then most companies around the world didn’t upgrade their OS, and the result was WannaCry,” he said in emailed statement.

He also points out that the ransomware has impacted so many sectors across the world, this was not a targeted attack. According to him, over 50 per cent of Windows systems are still not patched across India, which is worrisome figure. He says enterprises in India need to take cyber infrastructure seriously, because it will have direct impact on their business.

Petya ransomware and need to invest in cyber security for enterprise firms


According to Matt Moynahan, CEO of security firm Forcepoint, “The latest ransomware attacks are demonstrating just how vulnerable critical infrastructure is by hitting railways, airports, hospitals and more. The lines between nation-state defense and commercial defense continue to blur.”

Forcepoint says the ransomware spread laterally within an organisation via a vulnerability in the Microsoft Windows system. This was similar to WannaCry. Both Petya and WannaCry exploit the EternalBlue vulnerability in Windows XP and other Microsoft Windows systems to carry out the attack. It should be noted that Microsoft sent out the patch for this back in March, 2016.


Forcepoint’s CEO says  the attack shows how easily hackers can gain access to corporate infrastructure, and the motivation behind these attacks needs to be studied. “To address these new and evolving threats, we need to understand the intent and motivations behind them. If we do not invest in the cyber security of our critical infrastructure we will continue to see massive attacks with economic, employee and public safety ramifications,” says Moynahan.

Petya attack is more professional 

WannaCry ransomware came with a kill switch, which was discovered accidentally by a security researcher in the UK. But this time, the attackers have gotten better. In a blogpost, F-Secure Security Advisor Sean Sullivan wrote,  “WannaCry’s attackers failed because they couldn’t handle the amount of victims they created. But this Petya campaign, which is basically still in its first round, comes across as more professional and ready to cash in.” He says that amateur hour is over when it comes to global cyber attacks, which is not good news.

Don’t pay the Peyta attackers


For those who are infected, the cyber security experts have only one advice across the board: Don’t pay the hackers. Gemalto, which specialises in Digital Security, says consumers should not be paying the ransomware attackers.

“Because data is the new oil in the digital economy, ransomware attacks that restrict access to important data until the attacker is paid are becoming increasingly common. However, neither businesses nor individuals should pay ransoms to unlock any files that have been affected by a ransomware attack, as this incentivises and rewards these kinds of attacks,” said Rana Gupta, Vice President – APAC Sales, Identity and Data Protection, Gemalto in a statement.

He also says companies should encrypt and back-up their data and store this back-up away from the network, where the rest of the data is stored. This will ensure access to files even in case of a ransomware attack.

Use an anti-virus system, keep it updated


Security firm Symantec says their Symantec Endpoint Protection (SEP) and Norton products can protect customers against the spread of Petya, via the Eternal Blue vulnerability. According to Symantec, products on version 20170627.009 also detect Petya components as Ransom.Petya. Also Petya has been present since 2016. This differs from regular ransomware in the sense that it overwrites and encrypts the master boot record (MBR) of a system, and thus locking out the user from the system.

Source:Indian Express

Opposition's presidential candidate Meira Kumar files nomination

Opposition presidential candidate Meira Kumar pays homage at Samtha Sthal, memorial monument of her father and former Deputy Prime Minister Babu Jagjivan Ram, before filing her nomination, in New Delhi on Wednesday.   | Photo Credit: V. Sudershan

The Opposition parties' presidential candidate Meira Kumar filed her nomination in New Delhi on Wednesday at the Secretary General's office in Parliament. Ms. Kumar went in shortly after 11 a.m. and returned around 11.30 a.m.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh followed her out after the filing of nomination, after which they made their way to Ms. Gandhi's room for a meeting.

Asked before leaving the Parliament soon after noon what the fight for secularism meant for her in this context, Ms. Kumar told reporters, "We are fighting the same battle that Mahatma Gandhi was fighting."

An array of Opposition leaders were present in the Parliament on the occasion. Congress leaders Ahmed Patel, Ashok Gehlot, C.P. Joshi, Rajeev Shukla, Sachin Pilot, Raj Babbar, Ashok Tanwar and and Deepender Singh Hooda could be seen among those waiting outside the Secretary General's room as the filing of papers took place.


Left leaders Sitaram Yechury and D. Raja and BSP leader Satish Mishra also accompanied Ms. Kumar.

Source:The Hindu

China defends Pakistan after India, US target Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin

After the US designated Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin as a global terrorist, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang defended Pakistan, saying it "stands at the frontline of the international counterterrorism fight."

China on Wednesday defended its "all-weather" ally Pakistan after the United States moved to designate Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin a global terrorist , following talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump on Monday.
Asked about the move, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said, "We oppose all forms of terrorism. We also clearly stated we oppose linking terorism with certain countries."

"We have to say Pakistan stands at the frontline of the international counterterrorism fight," he added, "and has been making efforts in this regard."
"We think international cooperation on counterterrorism should be enhanced and international community should give full recognition to Pakistan's efforts in this regard," Lu said.

China's defence suggests it is all but certain to once again block moves to sanction the Jaish-e-Muhammad chief Masood Azhar at the UN Security Council sanctions committee. The listing, supported in January by the US, UK and France, was placed under a six-month technical hold that expires in July.

China had last year blocked the application filed by India.

Source:India Today