NEW DELHI : Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik has asked the Central government to give Goods and Services Tax (GST) exemption to Covid-vaccines and give fiscal support to states to fight back the pandemic.Patnaik said in a letter to finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman that states have been asked to purchase vaccines for people in the 18-45 years age group and that GST on vaccines would make the purchases costly for the states. “Hence GST needs to be exempted completely.
It will reduce the cost for states and facilitate our drive towards universal immunisation," the chief minister said. Mint has seen a copy of the letter.Patnaik also urged the Centre to share with states a part of the funds raised as cess and surcharges on products like.