Traders all over the country have asked for the withdrawal of the decision of the GST for the exemption on prepacked unbranded food items and levy of a 5% GST.
The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) issue a memorandum to all the state finance ministers asking for taking back the decision as this would hit small businesses and raise the compliance load for the small traders.
The official in the former week has decided to draw the packed foods such as milk, curd, and items like dried leguminous vegetables and makhana, wheat or meslin flour, jaggery, puffed rice, organic food, manure, and compost under 5% slab. The same decision comes beneath the bigger rate rationalization practice to increase the GST revenue collections along with the compensation policy for the states that comes to an end.
It also corrected inverted duties and eliminated several exemptions.
“Trade associations for foodgrains, pulses and rice have begun mobilizing traders by organizing state-level meetings. They are presenting a memorandum to their respective Finance Ministers urging them to withdraw their decision,” CAIT articulated.
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This decision made by the Union Finance minister and has state finance ministers as members will direct to rise in inflation for consumers.
15% of the population in the country utilizes branded goods on the other side 85% of the population chooses prepacked products which is the major reason for opposing the decision.
It is ineffective to draw down these items under the GST slab and is to be opt-out by the GST council and this decision should not be reported as immediate relief. He mentioned that rather than bringing the goods of daily use beneath the tax net same should be more effective to widen the tax net by drawing much more people beneath the GST tax net.
In the meeting of the GST, it also discussed that the room rent excluding ICU of more than Rs 5000 per day per patient imposed by the hospital will get taxed to the extent of the amount imposed for the room at 5% excluding ITC.
