'Benefit chain' of GST should continue: PM Modi tells MPs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday met BJP MPs from several states, including from Haryana, Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir, and emphasised the need to ensure continuance of the "benefit chain" under GST.

The prime minister also asked small businesses and traders to register under the recently rolled out goods and services tax, as the Members of Parliament maintained that there was a lot of enthusiasm among small commercial ventures regarding the new law.

"GST has been accepted and overwhelmingly supported across the country. Small traders should also register themselves with this new tax law. It should be ensured that the benefit chain of GST be continued," an official statement quoted Modi as saying.

Besides J-K, Delhi and Haryana, MPs from Punjab, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh as well as the party MP from Chandigarh were present during the meeting with the prime minister. Modi asked them to ensure that senior citizens get maximum benefits under various welfare schemes, including a new pension scheme, 'Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana (PMVVY)', under which they will get 8 per interest on their deposits.

The prime minister also talked about the development of hill regions, noting that the government had implemented various new schemes which had resulted in qualitative changes in the life of people. As a result, tremendous opportunities for jobs and tourism had opened up in the hill states, he added.

On closure of the public distribution system (PDS) in Chandigarh and Puducherry, Modi said money was directly transferred into the beneficiaries' accounts. This model, he added, could be adopted in other states as well.

This was Modi's sixth meeting with BJP MPs at his residence during the ongoing Monsoon session of Parliament. These meetings are coordinated by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar.