The GST Council, in its 22nd meeting held on 6 October 2017 under the chairmanship of the Union Finance Minister, recommended extensive reductions in GST rates on a wide range of goods along with exemptions from IGST on selected imports, with the objective of providing relief to consumers, small industries, and socially relevant sectors. Major GST rate cuts included reduction to 5 percent on essential and mass-consumption items such as dried sliced mangoes, khakra, plain chapati and roti, namkeens sold without registered branding, unbranded Ayurvedic and traditional medicines, biomass briquettes, real zari, e-waste, and various categories of waste and scrap including plastic, rubber, paper, and glass. Several textile and handicraft inputs such as sewing threads, synthetic and artificial filament yarns, and man-made staple fibre yarns were reduced from 18 percent to 12 percent, while poster colours, modelling paste for children, office stationery items, engineering components, and parts for agricultural and water-handling machinery were shifted from 28 percent to 18 percent. Duty credit scrips were fully exempted from GST. The Council also approved IGST exemptions on imports of rigs used in oil and gas exploration under lease, medicines supplied free by international organisations such as UNICEF and WHO, and bona fide gifts up to a specified value. Certain clarifications and conditional provisions were recommended to ensure proper implementation and prevent misuse. These decisions were aimed at rationalising the GST rate structure, reducing input costs for key sectors, supporting environmental and public welfare objectives, and improving overall ease of compliance.