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Arvind Shrivastava has taken charge as India’s Revenue Secretary today, which also makes him the Secretary in charge of the GST Council, a body comprising representatives from both the central and state governments as well as Union Territories, where considerations tend to be more political than economic.
The GST Council, which is expected to meet late in May or early June, is expected to take up crucial issues such as the demand for a cut in the goods and services tax (GST) on health and life insurance, alongside a proposed reduction in the duty levied on other items.
The 1994-batch IAS officer from the Karnataka cadre will have to chart a path to the eventual end of the compensation cess and implement the new income tax bill paving the way for a simpler income tax act, promised by his boss, the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The select committee of the Parliament is currently deliberating the bill and as revenue secretary, Shrivastava will have to ensure consensus among all stakeholders.
As the boss of the Central Board of Direct Taxes and the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, Shrivastava will also play a key role in trade deals, especially with the US and the European Union.
While the Ministry of External Affairs (under S Jaishankar) and the Commerce Ministry (headed by Piyush Goyal) play a direct role in the trade negotiations, the CBDT and CBIC have a significant role in providing inputs, notifying the new tariffs, and implementing the changes.
Two ongoing litigations await Shrivastava’s arrival
Online gaming companies along with casinos and race courses have challenged the huge GST demand, of over ₹1 one lakh crore. There’s also a legal challenge from German carmaker Volkswagen. Both Volkswagen and its Korean peer Kia Motors face a huge demand from the revenue department for allegedly violating customs duty norms.
The chiefs of the Enforcement Directorate and the Financial Intelligence Unit, which have many critical investigations ongoing, will also report to him.
There will be pressure to augment revenue collections at a time when the latest cuts to the income tax are likely to cost the exchequer over ₹1 lakh crore. Shrivastava will have to steer the policies and actions to find new ways and means to offset the cost of the income tax cut.
It will be interesting to see how Shrivastava steers through some of these hurdles.
Shrivastava, who served as Joint Secretary and then Additional Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office, was selected for the role earlier this month, amid a broader reshuffle of key administrative roles across the bureaucracy.
Previously, Shrivastava served as Joint Secretary and then Additional Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office, from where he has now assumed the charge of revenue at the Finance Ministry.
He has also served as Joint Secretary in the Budget Division of the Department of Economic Affairs (Ministry of Finance), Development Officer in the Asian Development Bank; Finance Secretary in the Karnataka government; Secretary of Urban Development Department in Bengaluru and the Managing Director in the Urban Infrastructure Development and Finance Corporation, Karnataka.
(Edited by : Sriram Iyer)
First Published: May 1, 2025 4:30 PM IST
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