The State Government, led by the Congress and JMM seems to have turned a blind eye to the inflation hit 'poor people' of Jharkhand. So much so, that it does not deem it necessary to rationalize the tax structure on petroleum products in the State to give a little relief to the common man.
The State, which has less per capita income, estimated monthly expenditure and GSDP in comparison to the developed States, levies taxes on petroleum products that are more of less similar to that of its developed counterparts.
Interestingly, the per capita GSDP of Jharkhand (at 2004-05 prices) on March 1, 2012 for the FY 2011-2012 was Rs 83,170, which is much lower than that of the Congress ruled States like Delhi with a GSDP for the period was Rs 2,13,429 as per the data revealed by Directorate of Economics & Statistics of respective State Governments and for All-India — Central Statistics Office.
Government statistics also reveal that the per capita income figures for 2011-2012 at constant prices of Delhi, Punjab and Haryana were Rs 1,19,032, Rs 46,688 and
Rs 63,045 respectively. On the other hand the figure for Jharkhand during the period was Rs 28,932.
However, the comparison of Fuel Prices among the developed States including Delhi, Punjab, Haryana and Jharkhand, shows a dismal picture. The price of Petrol in Delhi is Rs 74.1, in Haryana it's Rs 74.55 and in Jharkhand it is Rs 73.48.
According to Kirit S Parikh report on 'A Viable and Sustainable System of Pricing of Petroleum Products' the average prices of petrol in the country should have been Rs 59.56 per litre when the crude oil prices reach $100 per barrel.
At present, the prices are around $ 110 per barrel and the new prices of petrol have reached Rs 74 in Delhi.
Sadly, the government instead of rationalising the tax structure on petroleum products, is putting extra burden of taxes on the common man with every price hike as the amount of tax also goes up with the increasing price.
One of the most striking facts that appears to be concealed from the common man is that government is levying more than 50 per cent tax on the essential commodity. The tax build-up on petroleum products is around 52 per cent in Jharkhand, the Jharkhand Petroleum Dealers Association (JPDA) revealed
"There are multiple sources of earning revenue with the government. It's not like earning money by trading a commodity. If we can loser the taxes on petrol and raise it on products like tobacco and other items, the deficit will be
filled. This will also help in lowering the burden from the common man. The archaic tax structure needs to be abolished," said Kalika Saha of the JPDA.
However, requesting anonymity a senior government official said that the decision to lower taxes on petroleum products was a crucial one which could not be taken without strong political will. “We had had tried to reach a logical decision on the issue several times but each time we were stopped…. Blame it on political instability or indifference on the part of decision makers
but streamlining the finances of the State is not a child’s play,” he said.