WEF India: Fear of retro tax is gone now, says FM Arun Jaitley

Zee Media Bureau

New Delhi: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday said that first tranche of corporate tax reduction will be made when the next Finance Bill comes.

Speaking at the National Strategy Day on India, jointly organized by the World Economic Forum and Confederation of Indian Industry in Delhi, Jaitley added that fear of retro tax is gone now. He also said that two to three issues remain because of legal hurdles.

The one-on-one session on Delivering Growth in the New Context was moderated by  Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman, World Economic Forum.

Expressing his views on the Goods and services tax, he said GST is only a question of time. “When it's put to vote, we will be able to pass it,” said Jaitley.

Responding to a question on ways to revive private sector investment, he said that in the current situation public investment has to lead the way.

Considerable amount of resources have been devoted to step up public investment not only by the government but also by public sector enterprises and he was confident that the private sector would soon start participating in the investment cycle.

The government, he said, was making resources available to sectors such as highways and railways where expansion would have a positive impact on the rest of the economy.

The event  will see participation of more than 250 stakeholders and leaders, including Union Ministers. The theme of the meet is 'Delivering Growth in the New Context'.