EXCLUSIVE | Sanjeev Sanyal On GST Rate Cuts: “Not Too Late, Truly Next-Gen Reforms”

Responding to criticism from former finance minister P. Chidambaram that GST reforms came “eight years too late,” Sanjeev Sanyal defends the timing and explains why simplification couldn’t have happened sooner. In this India Today exclusive, the PM’s Economic Advisory Council member highlights how India avoided economic turmoil seen in other countries by introducing GST in 2017 with minimal disruption, then iteratively fixing issues like cascading and inversion. Now, with a stable system, reforms were possible — cutting slabs, reducing burdens, and easing compliance. Sanyal calls these changes truly “next generation,” stressing that inflation is under control, prices will ease further, and the reforms give room for macroeconomic growth.