Samsung has reduced the prices of its Galaxy M21 and Galaxy A50s mid-range smartphones in India. According to listings on the company’s official webstore in the country, the Galaxy M21 now costs Rs. 13,199 for the 4GB+64GB model and Rs. 15,499 for the 6GB+128GB model, while the Galaxy A50s is now priced at Rs. 18,599 for the 4GB+128GB variant and Rs. 20,561 for the 6GB+128GB version.

While the former was launched in India earlier this year at Rs. 12,999 for the 4GB+64GB model and Rs. 14,999 for the 6GB+128GB version, the prices were increased to Rs 14,222 and Rs. 16,499 following the GST (Goods and Services Tax) hike last month that saw the prices of flagship Samsung phones, like the Galaxy S20 and S20 Ultra, also increase quite significantly. As for the Galaxy A50s, it was priced at Rs. 21,070 for the 4GB model and Rs. 26,900 for the 6GB variant following the GST hike.

The GST hike last month was a big blow to smartphone vendors, especially in the middle of a pandemic that is already expected to adversely affect their bottomlines for the current financial year. To combat the hike, most vendors in the country, including Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi and Realme, increased prices of their smartphones by anything between a few hundred rupees at the lower-end to several thousands at the permium-end of the spectrum.

It’s worth noting that sales of ‘non-essential’ electronics are currently prohibited in India as part of the coronavirus lockdown, which means one cannot buy smartphones in the country either via online or offline stores. However, with the government announcing plans to loosen some of the restrictions in most areas from Monday, May 4th, online retailers, like Flipkart and Amazon, should be able to resume retail sales of smartphones in the country.