The implementation of GST brought cheers to every ‘wish to be organized and branded player’ in building material segment despite of extreme pain caused by high GST slab of 28 percent on every vital item including wood panels and furniture items. The building material industry was hoping for 18 % slab on key items including ply boards, doors and furniture and a quick e-way bill implementation from October 1st.. The E-way bill implementation could have helped to bring many of the un-organized and informal businesses to a level playing field. But the announcement of deferring e-way bill till 31st march has further distanced the time period for equal and level playing field for every player.
The price gap in plywood and decorative laminate category has widened as many small and unorganized players are back to unorganized working. Those players who were gearing up and preparing for implementing GST and become organized are felling extreme opposite market demands and are forced to loose their markets. The confusing scenario is a troublesome phase for organised and wish to be organised players till E-way bill is implanted. Postponing of e-way bill has created a scope for prolonged freedom for doing unreported business which has created a significant difference in prices of goods supplied by Organized and unorganized players.
The present market is struggling to maintain its sales and systems that were in developing phase post GST announcement. The associations of different states have urged their states to implement e-way bill in their state so that undue advantage taken by unorganized players by passing on tax gains and reducing prices without any basis can be kept under check. UP, Karnataka has initiated their e-way bill system already but states like Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, etc are still making requests.