Teams of the Commissionerate of Central Tax and Goods & Services Tax (GST) launched simultaneous raids at major jewellery shops across the State on Monday. As per reports, the raids were undergoing in 12 cities, including the twin cities of Cuttack and Bhubaneswar, to unearth suspected evasion of GST by the shops.
Sources said that the officials were also carrying out checks for suspected violation of weight and measurement standards. The raids were subsequent to allegations that some shops were selling fake gold ornaments to customers. Allegation also pertained to cheating on weight of the precious metal sold to unsuspecting customers by the unscrupulous traders.The raids assumed significance as those are being conducted ahead of the festive season, especially Dhanteras and Diwali, during which there is usually a huge rush of people to buy gold and other jewellery. Apart from Cuttack and Bhubaneswar, the raids were on in other major cities like Brahmapur, Rourkela and Sambalpur.
