By DC Correspondent

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Visakhapatnam : Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said the Goods and Services Tax (GST) has been simplified to alleviate the burden on citizens and further increase its acceptance.Speaking at the ‘Next Gen GST Reforms’ outreach programme here on Wednesday, Sitharaman interacted with representatives from trade associations and addressed their concerns. She presented an overview of the revised GST structure, past reforms and items that are exempt from tax. Sitharaman said the previous four tax slabs of 5, 12, 18, and 28 per cents have been consolidated into two: 5 and 18. Nearly 99 per cent of items that were previously taxed at the 12 per cent slab would now be taxed at 5 per cent. About 90 per cent of items from the 28 per cent slab have been moved to the 18 per cent slab. “These changes are set to take effect on September 22 and are expected to reduce costs for poor and middle-class families,” the finance minister said. Sitharaman said essential sectors have been given priority in the present set of GST reforms. Medical equipment and medicines would be exempt from GST. Taxes on agricultural tools and items related to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) have been reduced. She said substantial chunks of the GST revenue would be directed toward welfare schemes and infrastructure development. AP’s finance minister Payyavula Keshav described the reforms as a “landmark decision” resulting from extensive discussions in GST council meetings involving all states. Health minister Satyakumar Yadav stressed that these reforms would benefit the poor. The event was attended by BJP MLA Vishnu Kumar Raju, state BJP president PVN Madhav, Visakhapatnam district president Parashuram, GST council state president Srinivas and representatives from business, CREDAI, BNI, and taxpayers’ bodies.