KOCHI: Chief Commissioner of Central Excise, Customs and Service Tax Pullela Nageswara Rao on Friday said Kerala’s transition to GST has been a smooth sail. He was speaking at the ninth annual conference and state-level GST workshop organised by Kerala Homestay and Tourism Society here.
Rao said the Central Government had concerns regarding Kerala’s adaptation towards GST. However, it was a smooth affair. He said there are initial hiccups which will be solved soon.
“Kerala, being a consumer state, will benefit from GST than other states. GST would be a revenue booster and a game-changer for the state,” he said.
He said a time period of five or six months would be given to all before launching enforcement activities. Now the enforcement agencies are entrusted to facilitate people transit to GST.
Assistant Director GST Intelligence, Abraham Renn, said GST will be a boon for homestays and tourism industry.
He said it is not mandatory for the homestays having an annual business of less than `20 lakh to register in GST. He said as many as 17 taxes and 23 cesses were merged with GST.
“People will not have to file different annual returns by registering with GST,” he said.
K V Thomas MP, who attended the meet, raised concern over the waste disposal system in the tourism sector. He said lack of hygiene is affecting the tourism sector in the state.
He said foreign tourists prefer Sri Lanka, Maldives and Sikkim over Kerala owing to cleanliness there. Former MLA Dominic Presentation also spoke on the occasion.