While the ruling party leaders are sounding euphoric over the GST, the traders, especially the textile merchants and hoteliers, are anguished.
The textile merchants said that being so long unaccustomed with tax payment on the purchase of clothes, they would face immense difficulties with the GST having introduced 5 per cent tax for them. "Earlier, we used to bargain with the customers while selling the textile items. But now we would have to make the customers shell out 5 per cent GST," said one of the textile traders based in Dehradun.
The people who go to the restaurants along with their families are dithering with the GST having imposed a hefty tax. "In case we order coffee we are being asked to pay 18 per cent GST. It means if we order food and beverages to the tune of Rs 2000-Rs 2500 we would have to pay tax worth Rs 360- Rs 450.
We can hardly afford it," said a middle class resident of the city.
While expressing anguish to The Pioneer, the traders who sell cupboards or almirahs, said that they are a baffled lot. "The sales tax department has provided us with the draft cash memos while asking us to have them ready to be given to the customers. However, the problem is that we are yet to understand the nitty-gritty of the new tax regime," said one of them.
However, the saffron politicians are waxing eloquent on the advantages of the new regime for the traders as well as the people. The former CM and Haridwar MP Ramesh Pokhriyal NIshank said that it would provide relief to the people and the traders alike from the tax terror and the dreaded inspector raj. "It would pump fresh blood in the Indian economy too," he said. "Most of the commodities being used by the poor being kept out of the purview of the GST regime would help the economically unprivileged section of the people. The traders would reap benefits too as they would be spared the problem of paying taxes at varying rates to the states while transporting their goods from one place to the other. The competition becoming fiercer, the consumers would be the beneficiaries. It would also roll out a level playing field for the traders, big or small. The country would turn into a massive manufacturing hub", he said.
State Finance Minister Prakash Pant said that GST being now implemented, the State Government is keeping a close tab on the developing situation. "Currently, we are allowing entry of goods on voucher basis. Besides, our 100 mobile teams are vigilant across the State to tackle any situation," he added.