GST hike on phones will lead to immediate job cuts: Handset makers, retailers

NEW DELHI: Handset makers and mobile retailers said that the proposes GST hike will place an additional burden of Rs 15,000 crore on the common man, terming the move both “counter-intuitive and insensitive”, which will lead to immediate job losses and severely dampen future investments in manufacturing.

“To strike the sector with a higher GST at this stage is the equivalent of killing the goose that lays the golden egg. Not a savvy move by any stretch,” ICEA said on Sunday.

The decision was taken in the 39th GST Council meeting chaired by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The move was made to correct the inverted duty structure. Handset makers, however, said that the rationale of correcting the inverted duty structure by increasing GST is misplaced.