During the 30^th Meeting of the GST Council held here yesterday, the proposal of the State of Kerala for imposition of Cess on SGST for rehabilitation and flood affected works was discussed in detail.  The Council decided to constitute a 7-Member Group of Ministers (GoM) to examine this issue in depth.  Accordingly, the Union Finance Minister, Shri Arun Jaitley, has approved the constitution of a Group of Ministers yesterday (28^th September, 2018) to examine the issue regarding ‘Modalities for Revenue Mobilisation in case of Natural Calamities and Disasters’.

Shri Sushil Kumar Modi, Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar is the Convenor of the GoM and the following are its other Members:

1. Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma, Finance Minister, Assam;
2. Dr. T.M. Thomas Isaac, Finance Minister, Kerala;
3. Shri Sudhir Mungantiwar, Finance & Excise Minister, Maharashtra;
4. Shri Sashi Bhusan Behera, Finance & Excise Minister, Odisha;
5. Shri Manpreet Singh Badal, Finance Minister, Punjab;
6. Shri Prakash Pant, Finance Minister, Uttarakhand.

The GoM has to submit its report by 31^st October, 2018.

Revenue mobilisation for natural calamities: Group to examine modalities for levying cess on state GST and reporting recommendations. Constitution of a Group of Ministers to examine modalities for mobilising revenue in response to natural calamities and disasters, including proposals to levy a cess on SGST for rehabilitation and relief works; the GoM, comprising the convenor and specified state finance ministers, is tasked to assess levy mechanisms, administrative coordination, and institutional arrangements and to submit recommendations and a report within the prescribed timeframe to inform policy decisions.