US president Barack Obama has praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for “bold policy” move on India's most transformative tax reform in decades, Goods and Services Tax or GST on the sidelines of G20 summit in Hangzhou.
Modi first met Obama briefly when they were onstage to pose for a family photograph at the G20 Summit venue in this eastern Chinese city. The two leaders had another opportunity to exchange views during an informal evening programme.
Obama in his intervention during the G20 summit praised Modi for the recent tax reform as an example of “bold policy” in an otherwise “difficult global economic scenario”. On August 8, Parliament cleared the landmark Constitution (122nd Amendment) Bill, 2014, on the Goods and Services Tax.
The government has set April 1, 2017 as the target for rolling out the GST, considered the biggest tax reform in a long time. Earlier today, Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on the sidelines of the summit.
Modi, who arrived in Hangzhou on Saturday from Vietnam for the summit, also met Deputy Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammad bin Salman and discussed ways to enhance bilateral ties. The prime minister called for strengthened partnership with Saudi Arabia in sectors such as maritime, infrastructure, low-cost housing and discussed further cooperation in energy sector, they said.
On Monday, Modi will meet British counterpart Theresa May and Argentinian President Mauricio Macri before returning to Delhi.
(With inputs from PTI)
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