Arun Jaitley

New Delhi : Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday said the Goods and Services Tax (GST) has made doing trade easier as per the feedback he received after visiting trading centres in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh.

He said that the whole country was now a market for the trader, who also does not have to file multiple returns.

Jaitley told reporters here that results in the local body polls in Uttar Pradesh were an affirmation of people’s support for demonetisation and GST.

Referring to the GDP growth rising to 6.3 percent afer a five quarter slump, he said it shows that structural reforms benefit in the medium and long term.

Jaitley said it had been stated earlier that demonetisation would have an impact for one or two quarters and GST for about one quarter.

“The structural reforms have benefit in medium and long term. The change is being understood clearly now,” he said.

Answering a query, he said: “GST has made it easier to do trade and business. Every trader has more opportunity. Now the whole country is his market, it has saved travelling time.”

The minister said a single return is to be fied in place of multiple returns and that too is to put in the software and there is freedom from inspectors.

“Whereever I have gone to trading centres in Gujart, UP, we have got this feedback,” Jaitley said.

He said BJP got a three-fourth mandate in assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand after demonetisation, though some people had said that demonetisation will have a big impact.

“Today’s results in local body elections reaffirm the same,” he said.

—IANS