Clarification on cess draws flak

LUDHIANA, Nov 12: The clarification issued by the state government regarding the imposition of a one per cent infrastructure cess on a varie...

LUDHIANA, Nov 12: The clarification issued by the state government regarding the imposition of a one per cent infrastructure cess on a variety of items from Nov 11 has invited further criticism from many quarters. Irate customers who had been paying the cess on petrol from November 8 wanted to know what would happen to the surplus collected for three days before the imposition of the cess while industrialists who had expected the goverment to retract the move have once again criticised it.

Satwant Singh, a resident of Sarabha Nagar, said, “I have been paying the new rate on petrol from November 8, a good three days before the cess comes into effect. Where has that money gone? The government seems to be working at cross-purposes and the consumers are the losers.”

Petrol pump owners when contacted said the cess was being charged by Indian Oil Corporation from that date and whoever took supply from a tanker had to pay the new rate. The money, they say, has been collected by the oil companies.

Meanwhile, the Chamber of Industrial and Commercial Undertakings (CICU) criticising the move stated that the Punjab government has once again made the trade and industrial community an easy prey of their taxation policy’. President CICU, Inderjit Singh Pradhan claimed that a CICU deputation was assured by Chief Minister P.S. Badal on November 8 that he would reconsider the levy. He added that such policies would lead to the migration of industries from the state.

Automobile dealers who have already seen a steep decline in sales have been especially critical of the cess. Gagandeep Swani, who owns a Maruti car dealership, said, “Sales in any case have fallen by around 25 per cent since last year. As it is a Maruti 800 costs Rs 3,000 more in the city as compared to Himachal Pradesh and there is a whole network supplying new cars from that state to customers in the city.

With this new cess sales will fall even further and it is the neighbouring states who will gain. If the idea is to increase collections, this would be better done by tackling the causes of the recession rather than further worsening it.