Union Budget 2020: GST reduction will help garner investments for the entertainment sector

By Mitesh Shah

Over the last year, the Government has been on a steady path of reforms introducing varied measures to spur business growth while also enabling capital infusion across several sectors. The reduction in Corporate Tax has been especially significant, signalling an improved business sentiment.

As we move ahead, we look forward to more progressive and pro-growth reforms in Budget 2020, that are especially related to the Goods and Services Tax. The growth of the economy has been a long standing concern and to help boost this, we urge the government to rationalize GST rates on live entertainment i.e. admission to entertainment events including live music concerts and sporting events through structured slabs.

Given the vast growth potential of the out-of-home entertainment sector and its impact in boosting tourism and the economy at large, reduction in GST rates in this field will help significantly in attracting investments as also give a much-needed fillip to the industry as we look towards making India a world class entertainment destination.

We hope that the budget will also look at giving an impetus to start-ups with a turnover between Rs 25-100 crore enabling them to claim exemptions under section 80-IAC of Income Tax Act. The move will go a long way in bolstering India’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. A full tax rebate to individual taxpayers with an income of up to INR 10 lakhs to increase the purchasing power parity of the Indian consumers will significantly boost India’s consumption story, and be a significant step in aiding the country’s economy to hit the $5 trillion mark over the next few years.

(Mitesh Shah is the Head of Finance at BookMyShow)