Group 1 - The GST Council approved a significant restructuring of the GST framework, eliminating the 12% and 28% slabs and introducing a special 40% rate for 'sin' goods like tobacco and luxury items [4][7] - GST rates on essential items such as packaged food, shampoo, toothpaste, and shaving cream have been reduced to 5%, while rates for small cars, dishwashers, air conditioners, and televisions have decreased from 28% to 18% [4][7] - Economists anticipate that these changes, effective from the start of the festive season, will enhance domestic consumption amid uncertain global demand [5][7] Group 2 - The new GST rates are expected to benefit 11 of the top 30 consumption items, which account for about one-third of an average consumer's monthly spending [5][7] - The impact of the GST changes will be monitored through price movements, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), and GST collections [5][8] - The average GST collection in the first five months of FY26 was ₹2.01 lakh crore, an increase from ₹1.83 lakh crore in the same period last year [6][8]