Calamity Cess:

• The central government is considering a calamity cess on Goods and Services Tax (GST) to tide over the economic crisis triggered by the coronavirus pandemic.
• Kerala implemented a cess of disaster relief during the 2018 monsoon floods. It levied a 1 percent calamity cess on GST effective from 1 August 2019 for a term of two years.
• It is the only state to have levied such a cess using the Constitutional provision, Section (4) (F) of Article 279 A, which refers to “any special rate or rates for a specified period to raise additional resources during any natural calamity or disaster”.
• The GST (Compensation to States) Act, 2017 also provides for the imposition of cess up to the rate of 15 percent ad valorem (based on estimated value) on “any other supplies”.