IAS Sharma appointed as Chairman of National Anti-Profiteering Authority
What's the story
After the cabinet gave approval to create the posts of chairman and other technical members of the National Anti-profiteering Authority (NAA) under GST, government began the process. They have appointed senior IAS officer Badri Narain Sharma as the chairman of the newly-constituted NAA. The NAA has been constituted to ensure that the benefits of GST rate reduction pass on to consumers. Here's more!
Personal
Who is BN Sharma?
BN Sharma is a 1985-batch IAS officer of the Rajasthan cadre. He is currently posted as Additional Secretary in the Revenue department. He has been closely associated with GST's formulation and implementation. As NAA Chairman, Sharma will have the rank and pay of a Secretary.
Working
How will the anti-profiteering authority work?
As part of the GST's anti-profiteering mechanism, local complaints will be sent to state-level screening committees and those at the national level will be addressed by a standing committee. If the complaints are valid, they will be sent for further investigation to the Directorate General of Safeguards. DG Safeguards will take maximum 3 months to investigate the complaint and send a report to NAA.
Powers
What powers does the NAA have?
If the NAA finds a company guilty of not passing GST benefits to consumers, it will direct them to pay up. If the beneficiary is unidentifiable, the company will transfer the said amount to the "consumer welfare fund" within a particular time-frame. As a last resort, the NAA also has the power to cancel the registration of an entity or business.