By Shrimi Choudhary
The Goods and Services Tax rates on cigarettes, carbonated drinks, and high-end cars may go up as a proposal is under consideration to replace compensation cess with health and green cess, as per government sources.Currently, the select items are in the 28% GST bracket and subject to compensation cess.The compensation cess is set to expire on March 31, 2026. The levy was introduced in 2017 to compensate states for the lost revenue due to GST.A Group of Ministers on compensation cess, headed by Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary, is looking into the future of the levy beyond March 2026..Sources also said that deliberations over reduction in the number of slabs to three, possibly by abolishing the 12% slab, is underway. Several goods, including some food items, could move to 5% slab, if the 12% rate is done away with, while some could shift to the higher slab of 18%, sources said.The GST Council’s upcoming meeting expected to take up the matter.June GST Collection At Rs 1.85 Lakh Crore, Up 6.2% YoY