8 Years Of GST | From Vajpayee’s Vision To Modi’s Implementation: GST Journey Explained

On July 1, 2017 midnight, India saw what was described as a “tryst with economic destiny”. Under a ceremonial launch in Parliament's Central Hall, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) was rolled out as the most significant economic reforms in India's history, revolutionising the country's indirect tax system. Often referred to as One Nation, One Tax, GST replaced a patchwork of indirect taxes with a unified framework aimed at streamlining India’s economy. Before the introduction of GST, India’s tax structure was complex and multi-layered, with various direct and indirect taxes that varied from state to state. Taxes like VAT, excise duty, service tax, and central sales tax were levied at different stages of production and distribution, leading to a cascading effect on the consumer. The formation of the new indirect tax regime started way back in 2000 when the then prime minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, set up a committee headed by then finance minister of West Bengal, Asim Dasgupta, to design a GST model. Eight years since its historic rollout, GST has transformed the Indian tax system in ways never seen before. But for all its success, GST remains far from the "Good and Simple Tax" it originally aimed to be.