GST good and simple? Relief ahead, but frequent course correction along its bumpy route

With criticism mounting of the poor implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) during the first hundred days of the new regime, the GST council, chaired by finance minister Arun Jaitley, announced changes in the structure and policy of the tax on October 6. A damage control measure such as this was expected sooner rather than later, especially with some state assembly elections around the corner. The latest announcements are aimed at providing relief to exporters and small businesses and reducing tax rates on 27 commodities. But are these measures enough to mitigate the pain these sectors have experienced since the GST rollout on July 1?

Some relief for SMEs

Under the original GST guidelines, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with an annual turnover