Petroleum products not to be included under GST, says Nirmala Sitharaman

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], September 17 : Petroleum products will not be included under the Goods and Services Tax (GST), said Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday.
The 45th meeting of the GST Council was held today in Lucknow under the chairmanship of Sitharaman.
Briefing the media persons after the meeting, the Union Minister said, "There has been a lot of speculation on whether petroleum products will be brought under the ambit of GST. I make it absolutely clear that this came on today's agenda purely because of the Kerala High Court order where it suggested the matter to be placed before GST Council. GST Council Members made it clear they do not want petroleum products to be included under GST. We will report to Kerala High Court that the matter has been discussed and Council felt it was not the time to bring petroleum products under GST.
Sitharaman announced a reduction in GST rate on biodiesel, which is supplied to oil marketing companies for blending with diesel, from 12 per cent to 5 per cent.
Giving relief to transporters and exporters, the Finance Minister said, "National Permit Fee charged by states for granting permits to goods vehicles to operate throughout India or in contiguous states is being exempted from GST. Transport of export goods by vessels and air is exempt from GST; this was given due to difficulties being faced by exporters for getting Input Tax Credit refund due to technical issues on GST Portal. Although GST portal is stable now, keeping in view the COVID19 pandemic, this exemption is being extended by one year, so that exporters do not suffer."
Further, the GST rate on fortified rice kernels which can be used in schemes like Integrated Child Development Services Scheme has been reduced from 18 per cent to 5 per cent.
"Specified renewable energy devices attract 5 per cent GST now, however, all their inputs are taxed at 18 per cent. This inversion leads to the embedding of input tax credit (ITC) on input services and capital goods. To reduce inversion, GST will be 12 per cent for those specified renewable devices. This will help domestic industry and Aatmanirbhar Bharat, particularly at a time when India is looking at emphasizing Renewable Energy," she stated.
The Finance Minister said IGST payable on import of aircraft or other goods imported on lease shall now be exempted from double taxation.
"This will facilitate domestic industry and aviation sector. These will also allow transfer of goods imported under lease without payment of IGST," she added.
GST on Railway parts and locomotives and other rail parts will be increased from 12 per cent to 18 per cent to correct inverted duty structure.
Sitharaman said that GST on retro-fitment kits for vehicles used by Divyang Persons with Disabilities has been reduced to 5 per cent.
"To give prominence to skill development, training programmes wholly funded by Central/State governments are already exempt from GST. Training programmes where the government bears 75 per cent or more of the cost shall now be exempt from GST. GST on pen parts is 18 per cent, while GST in certain kinds of pens is charged 12 per cent. It has been decided to correct this inversion by making the rate on all pens and pen parts to 18 per cent," she said.