NEW DELHI: West Bengal finance ministry Amit Mitra on Tuesday advocated the GST Council consent to take zero tax for many Covid associated materials, equipment, vaccines and drugs. At a letter to Union finance ministry Nirmala Sitharaman, Mitra stated this will enable the makers and their distribution chain entrepreneurs to get input tax charge and there wouldn’t be any adverse effect on costs for consumers. “You’d agree this can be a very tough time regarding the lifestyles of countless individuals and we must go the additional mile for efficiently handling the catastrophe due to this pandemic. The next wave also cannot be ruled out,” Mitra explained in his correspondence to Sitharaman. “. . .It is the time we take radical steps to deliver relief to the individuals,” that the Bengal FM stated. The following GST Council meeting will occur on May 28. Several nations had required that the authorities meet to explore several outstanding problems. Some states like West Bengal had demanded waiver of GST on certain things used for combating Covid-19 but it was reversed by Sitharaman who contended such a transfer would strike users. In his correspondence Mitra also attracted attention to this letter composed by CM Mamata Banerjee into PM Modi advocating for exemption of GST/customs responsibility on Covid essentials.