While assuring the traders still grumbling over the GST-triggered inconveniences after nearly twenty days since its July 1 rollout of the State Government’s commitment to address their grievances, the state finance minister Prakash Pant asked them to seek assistance by dialing the toll free number 18002742277. He further stated while talking to the media persons on Wednesday that close to 900 such calls have been received so far and the officials concerned have addressed all of them. “We are happy to note that around 80 percent of the traders based in the state have already registered themselves under the new indirect tax regime,” he said. He also informed that to check inflation , the Government has excluded five items, including petrol, diesel, aviation turbine fuel (ATF) and crude oil.
lauding the new regime as an instrument to free the traders from the vicious grip of the inspector raj, he said that the new regime would benefit both the traders and the consumers in the long run. “We are leaving no stone unturned to educate the traders about the nuances of the new regime. Over 350 workshops have been organised so far where the macro and the micro details of the regime have been discussed threadbare,” Pant said. He further said that getting registered
under the GST regime is a very simple process. “Those traders who are inclined to do business while dodging taxes would be inconvenienced under the regime.
For, all scope for such tax dodging has been closed,” he said.
“GST is unique being divided into five parts. Just five kinds of tax slabs- zero, five, 12, 18 and 28 percent- are in force,” he said.
While dwelling on the complaints from the traders based in the state over the GST turnover registration limit being pegged at Rs 10 lakh for them as contrasted with the limit standing at Rs 20 lakh elsewhere, the state finance minister said that the traders whose annual turnover is Rs 10 lakh and more must get registered now and file the returns once a month as per the norms. “However, we are taking up the matter with the Union finance ministry to increase the slab to Rs 20 lakh like what the traders of other states are enjoying,” he said.
He also said that with Uttarakhand being a consumer state, the consumers would reap huge benefits once things are put into place. “The prices would come down with one nation one tax formula being enforced, sparing the traders to pay transportation taxes at every point while the transportation is covering several States.
The traders are to pay a single tax at a time,” Pant said.