Which is the first Indian state to ratify the GST Constitution Amendment Bill, recently passed by the Parliament of India?
- A.Assam
- B.West Bengal
- C.Meghalaya
- D.Arunachal Pradesh
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is A, Assam. Assam became the first state to ratify the GST Constitution Amendment Bill, on 12 August 2016, soon after Parliament passed it. Because GST changes the taxing powers of both the Centre and the states, the bill needed approval from at least half of the state legislatures under Article 368. Bihar was the second state and Jharkhand the third. After enough states ratified it, the President gave assent on 8 September 2016 and it became the Constitution (101st Amendment) Act, 2016. It added Article 246A and created the GST Council under Article 279A, and GST came into force on 1 July 2017. B is wrong because West Bengal ratified the bill only after Assam. C is wrong because Meghalaya was not the first state to ratify it. D is wrong because Arunachal Pradesh was not the first state either. Exam tip: GST = 101st Amendment, 2016; first state to ratify = Assam; GST Council = Article 279A, chaired by the Union Finance Minister; GST in force from 1 July 2017.
Practice Questions
View allAccording to the law of diminishing marginal utility, as the amount of a good consumed increases, the marginal utility of that good tends to
- A.improve
- B.diminish
- C.remain constant
- D.first diminish and then improve
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Each extra unit of a good gives a consumer less additional satisfaction than the unit before it, so marginal utility falls as consumption rises.
Read the full explanation →Consider the following statements about impact of tax : 1. A tax is shifted forward to consumers if the demand is inelastic relative to supply. 2. A tax is shifted backward to producers if the supply is relatively more inelastic than demand. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- A.1 only
- B.2 only
- C.Both 1 and 2
- D.Neither 1 nor 2
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The burden of a tax falls more heavily on whichever side of the market is less elastic, the side that cannot easily walk away.
Read the full explanation →UBI, as an alternative for subsidies in poverty alleviation, stands for
- A.Union Basic Income
- B.Undefined Basic Income
- C.Unconditional Basic Income
- D.Universal Basic Income
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UBI is the idea of paying every citizen a fixed sum of money regularly, without conditions, in place of a large number of separate subsidies and welfare schemes.
Read the full explanation →Who among the following is the Chairman of the Fourteenth Finance Commission?
- A.C. Rangarajan
- B.Vijay Kelkar
- C.Y. V. Reddy
- D.Rakesh Mohan
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The Fourteenth Finance Commission, set up in 2013 for the award period 2015-2020, was chaired by Y. V. Reddy, a former Governor of the Reserve Bank of India.
Read the full explanation →Why was constitutional amendment needed for introducing GST?
- A.States were not willing to agree with the Union for introduction of GST without amendment in the Constitution.
- B.GST was to be implemented on concurrent base and Article 246 was inadequate for such a case.
- C.The Empowered Committee of Finance Ministers had recommended for constitutional amendment.
- D.The GST Council had recommended for constitutional amendment so that its power enhances.
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GST is levied by the Union and the States together on the same supply, and Article 246, which splits taxing powers between them through separate lists, did not allow such a concurrent tax.
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