The two-day national conference on Second Generation Reforms in Goods and Services Tax in India : Implications for State Finances and Fiscal policy, organised by the Gulati Institute of Finance and Taxation, in collaboration with Indian Council of Social Science Research, got under way here on Monday.
Delivering the keynote address in the opening technical session, R. Kavitha Rao, Director, National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, pointed out that in GST 2.0, there is a reduction of effective tax rate from 11.6% to 9.5% . She pointed out that the GST- GDP ratio had declined to 5.96% in 2025 -26 from 6.07% in 2022 – 23.
The session was chaired by Arvind Modi, former IRS official and senior economist at the IMF.
In the first plenary session on GST performance, fiscal federalism and revenue productivity under GST 1.0 – 2.0, the main speakers were Sacchidhananda Mukherjee of NIPFP, R. Mohan, former Income Tax Commissioner, and Sebastian Morris, Professor, Goa institute of Management.
Arvind Modi from the IMF and D. Narayana, chief economic advisor to the vice chairman of the State Planning Board and Honorary Fellow of GIFT were the speakers in the session, “Dialogue between Senior Tax Administrators”.
Senior economists, Mridul Eapen, Mary George, faculty and students from various colleges and research scholars participated in various sessions.
The conference on Monday featured two technical sessions, which discussed GST revenue performance and industrial variation, GST and State finances: comparative and sub National evidence; Fiscal federalism and the design of GST 2.0: institutional and comparative perspectives.
Rate rationalisation, prices and distribution outcomes, compliance behaviour and enforcement and MSMEs, digital administration and institutional capacity were also discussed.
More than 25 research papers on different aspects of GST were presented in these technical sessions.
The national conference will be formally inaugurated by the Chief Minister V. D. Satheesan, who is also the Finance Minister and the Chairman of GIFT, on Tuesday.
Mr. Satheesan will launch GIFT’s new publication, ‘Economy and Fiscal Watch’ (EFW), at the inaugural function.
Published – September 07, 2026 09:35 pm IST
