The tourism industry was pinning hopes on the Modi Government to put forth a definitive timeline for a nationwide roll out Goods and Services Tax and were upset that the Union Budget 2015 gave it a miss. The recent news of the Lok Sabha passing the goods and service tax (GST) Bill has come through as a pleasant announcement. The members of the Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO) are positive that the tax regime will help them set off the service tax giving a significant boost to the tourism industry. They were expecting some announcement during the financial year but are glad to receive an announcement in the early part of 2015. Speaking on this move, in an exclusive with Express TravelWorld, Rajeev Wagle, MD, Kuoni India said, “It is a very good step that the government has taken. I hope it gets passed in the Rajya Sabha as smoothly. All those countries that have adapted GST have grown in their GDP. Specifically to the travel industry, we need to be a little clear as how it will work out. I think all industries should benefit from this announcement. However it should be clear of bureaucratic bottlenecks.” Rajeev Kohli, Vice president, IATO, also felt that this will work well for the economy. Stated Kohli, “Tax reform is critical to taking our economy forward. I only hope tourism does not get treated as a luxury and taxed too heavily.”
(with inputs from Akshay Kumar)