Handset companies say GST hike will hit jobs, consumers

NEW DELHI: Handset makers and mobile retailers said the proposed GST hike on mobile phones is a “counter-intuitive and insensitive” move that will place an additional burden of ₹15,000 crore on the consumers, 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,” India Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA) said in a statement on Sunday.

The decision to hike GST on mobile phones to 18% from 12% was taken at the GST Council meeting chaired by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday.