ICCC board with Sushil Kumar Modi
(l to r): Mike Mehta, Tony Chawla, Naval Bajaj, Jagdish Bajaj, Sanjay Makkar, DP Jain
Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC) organized a business reception and dinner for an Indian empowered committee on taxation Thursday, September 13. The committee was in Canada mid-September to study and understand the Canadian experience in implementing the goods and services tax.
Sushil Kumar Modi, Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar, led the delegation that included finance and taxation ministers from eight states officials from 15. Speaking on the occasion, Modi said the committee wants to understand Canadian experience in the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Modi said introducing tax reforms in India while essential is fraught with many issues that need a careful examination. Understanding Canada’s experiences in this context, when it introduced the GST, and Ontario’s experiences during the introduction of the Harmonised Sales Tax (HST) would be important for India.
The delegation comprised ministers from eight Indian states responsible for finance and taxation and included Dr. A.K. Walia, Delhi’s Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Revenue, Urban Development and Irrigation and Flood Control; Kiran Choudhry, Haryana’s Minister of Excise and Taxation; A.R. Rather, Jammu & Kashmir’s Minister for Finance and Ladakh Affairs; Raghavji, Madhya Pradesh’s Minister for Finance & Commercial Tax; Pu Zodintluanga, Mizoram’s Minister for Taxation; Prasanna Acharya, Odisha’s Minister for Finance & Public Enterprises; and Parminder Singh Dhindsa, Punjab’s Minister for Finance.
In addition, officers responsible for taxation and finance from 15 states were also part of the delegation.
Harinder Takhar, Ontario’s Minister for Government Services; Bal Gosal, Canada’s Minister for State for Sports, Dr. Asha Seth, Senator, Senate of Canada, represented the Canadian side at the reception. Minister Takhar was officially representing Ontario’s Premier Dalton McGuinty at the reception.
Over 200 guests including taxation and public finance experts such as John Wilkinson, former Minister of Revenue in Ontario; Bruce Wurts, tax consultant; and David Peterson, Partner, Ernst & Young.
Speaking on the occasion, Naval Bajaj, President, ICCC, said that it is significant that such a large delegation of Indian decision makers have come to Canada to understand the feasibility of implementing tax reforms in India.
“For us at the Chamber, this is evidence – and none is required – of the growing closeness between Canada and India. The scope of the bilateral relations has only just begun to unfold, and has validated our Chamber’s unstinted efforts over the past three-and-a-half decades to enhance Canada-India ties,” he observed.
About the purpose of the delegation’s visit, Bajaj said that while tax reforms are an essential requirement in any economy, it is important that such reforms are introduced after due consultations and after assessing the requirements and the needs of the people likely to be affected by the reforms. “Tax reforms should be offered as a solution,” he emphasized.
He informed the gathering that the ICCC had organised several workshops a couple of years ago during Ontario’s transition to the harmonised sales tax where our members provided crucial inputs to the planned changes.
Speaking on the occasion, Minister Takhar said that Ontario’s experience in implementing the HST was good and it had helped revive the economy because the Ontario government had adopted a consensual approach while introducing the reform.
Minister Gosal, during his address, emphasized the growing closeness between Canada and India and said that the sixth round of the negotiations on the free trade agreement was scheduled to commence soon, and good progress had been made during the last five rounds.
Preeti Saran, Consul General of India in Toronto, lauded the ICCC for role in fostering bilateral ties between Canada and India. Dr. Asha Seth, Senator of the Senate of Canada, welcomed the delegation.
