UPDATE 1-India won't meet April 1 target to begin GST-finmin     

India will not meet its April 1 target for implementing a nationwide goods and services tax (GST) as it works towards an agreement with state governments, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Thursday.

The targeted April 1 deadline for launching the GST, which is intended to simplify India's revenue system, broaden the tax base and minimise exemptions, had been increasingly in doubt given the opposition at the state level.

"We will not be able to meet the GST deadline. We are trying hard for a consensus among states. It will be possible only at an appropriate time," Mukherjee said at an industry meet.

Earlier this year, the head of a government panel said implementing GST could boost revenue by $15 billion a year by increasing exports, lifting employment and driving growth.

India's federal government sets some taxes, but its states have the autonomy to set their own taxes as well, which are a major source of revenue.

Mukherjee also said India is not considering a withdrawal of its fiscal stimulus until the economy makes a complete recovery.

"Stimulus package was injected to boost the economy. Unless the full recovery is possible and when the planners are able to make an assessment that it is a time to withdraw, then only the stimulus package will be withdrawn," he said.

On Wednesday, Mukherjee said India's economy could grow around 7.5 to 8 percent in the fiscal year that ends in March, exceeding last year's 6.7 percent expansion, which had followed three years of growth of at least 9 percent.