Merit app will ensure transparency, curb corruption: Piyush Goyal

Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal said here on 4 July that the new Merit Order Dispatch of Electricity for Rejuvenation of income and Transparency, or 'Merit' App launched today, will enable a greater degree of monitoring on the electricity and power sector, adding that it will increase transparency and help in curtailing corruption.

"The Merit App will bring more transparency, and hence help in monitoring the sector better. Details of government utilities, power distributors, details of all electricity purchases made will be clearly presented, thereby ensuring stringent check on corruption," Goyal said to reporters here.

"By assessing the information, the Centre will also be able to detect whether electricity can be made available at a cheaper cost. With the new app, it will also be possible to save a yearly amount of Rs. 20,000 crore, which can be used by the Centre to provide better facilities to the people," he added.

The Ministry of Power, in addition to this, also launched an online bidding portal for achieving flexibility in the utilisation of domestic coal.

Lauding the GST Network ( GSTN) and Council for the successful rollout of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), Goyal asserted that the new regime will help in achieving transparency with regards to tax rates being levied on different commodities.

Contrary to beliefs, Goyal also said business will become much simpler under the GST, with more efficient system of filing taxes and simpler procedures for obtaining paperwork for the same.

-ANI