Two GST Tribunal benches to start functioning in Kolkata soon: Official

Kolkata, Sep 16 (PTI) The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Tribunal in Kolkata is expected to start functioning from next month with two benches at Alipore, an official said on Tuesday.

"There will be two benches of the GST Tribunal at Alipore in Kolkata. West Bengal will have one bench, and Sikkim & Andaman and Nicobar Islands will have another," said Shrawan Kumar, Chief Commissioner, Kolkata Zone, CGST and Central Excise, while speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a Merchants’ Chamber of Commerce and Industry session.

The government had said in July that only 28 out of the approved 73 GSTAT benches have been made operational so far.

The GST Appellate Tribunal is a quasi-judicial authority meant to hear appeals against orders passed by first appellate authorities under the CGST and SGST Acts.

Meanwhile, West Bengal Commercial Taxes Commissioner Uma Sankar S, at the same platform, cautioned that the state could face a significant revenue loss.

The revised GST structure will place most goods under two tax brackets—5 and 18 per cent—while the 12 and 28 per cent slabs will be abolished.

With this change, the weighted average GST rate is projected to drop to 9.5 per cent from the current 11.6 per cent, officials said.

Responding to a query on whether lower rates could ultimately expand the tax base, Sankar said, "It is expected that consumption would increase further with lower GST rates and higher disposable income under the new income tax regime. But it will take time." PTI BSM RG