Punjab Government may go for providing some relief to the traders and industrialists under the e-TRIP (Transportation Information within Punjab) system.
The State Government has kept its options open to consider various proposals put forth by the traders in their hours long meeting with Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal on late Tuesday evening.
The Excise and Taxation Commissioner (ETC) Anurag Verma has been asked to study these proposals, suggested by the traders, and come pout with viable solution.
Among the suggestions, the State Government is considering to impose lump sum tax on the plywood and hosiery industries, to exclude from the e-trip system the small industrialists transporting hosiery goods and nut-bolts within a city, depositing tax on cash counters at various check points and at ICC Railway Station ludhiana, among others.
During the special detailed meeting with various groups of industry and trade, the Deputy Chief Minister-cum-Excise and Taxation Minister addressed their grievances and removed misconceptions about the new transparent revenue collection method for six items — cotton, sarson, vegetable oils, iron and steel, plywood and yarn.
Sukhbir, after the meeting, informed that cotton traders have welcomed the e-Trip system and there were no complaints of traders of sarson, vegetable oil.
“Apprehensions of iron and steel industry, especially of casting and forging industry, has been removed and negotiations are on with plywood industry for lump-sump system. Hosiery, nut-bolt and fastner industry has agreed for e-Trip through transporters and there is no problem for the e-Trip system in pipes, iron and steel and rice industry,” said Sukhbir.
Sukhbir assured the representatives of the industry that SAD-BJP government was the most “industry and trade friendly government”. “We have taken series of initiatives to introduce transparency in the revenue collection, check harassment of businessmen besides computerizing the whole system to reduce interaction between taxpayer and collection agency,” he said.
During the meeting, the Plywood Industry Association has assured total support to the Government maintaining that presently, on an average, they were paying average tax of Rs two lakh per press and they were ready to pay Rs nine lakh tax per press if e-trip system from plywood industry was withdrawn.
Responding, Sukhbir has asked the ETC to study the proposal and come out with viable solutions.
Further allaying the apprehension of harassment of small industrialists, Sukhbir agreed to the demand of knitwear club and nut-bolt industry that transport of hosiery goods and nut-bolts within the parameters of the city would not be checked for e-Trip.
At the same time, he made it clear that once the goods left the city, they would be liable to be checked for e-Trip.
Removing the apprehension of Casting and Forging Industry, Sukhbir clarified that e-Trip was not applicable to casting and forging industry.
Sukhbir also asked the ETC to study the proposal of hosiery industry to charge lump-sump tax on per box or per sack to break the patty mafia operating in the State.
In addition, Sukhbir also asked the Commissioner to come out with a proposal under which hosiery traders would be able to deposit tax on cash counters established at various check points and at ICC Railway Station ludhiana.
Traders to get pending VAT refunds before October
Chandigarh: Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir has promised the trading community to provide their pending VAT refunds before October, and reducing the power cuts on industries.
Responding to the industrialists’ concern over the inordinate delay in getting outstanding VAT refund of more than Rs600 crore, Sukhbir assured to pay the same by September 30.
On industrialists’ demand to reduce the imposition of three-day off for general industry and four-day off for induction furnaces by the Punjab State Power Corporation limited (PSPCl), Sukhbir has asked the state power utility to consider the same, and bring it down.