Telangana seeks GST waiver on beedis

Hyderabad: Telangana Finance Minister Mr T Harish Rao has requested the Centre to exempt beedis from GST. The beedi rolling sector is providing employment to lakhs of workers, mostly women in Telangna, said Mr Rao.

Mr Rao participated in GST Council meeting in Goa on Friday. Voicing concerns over tax anomalies, Mr Rao said Goods and Services Tax (GST) was impacting the beedi sector negatively.

“The beedi sector is employing more than five lakh workers in 1,000 units in Telangana. The 28 per cent GST is an unbearable burden on the beedi rolling units. The higher tax regime is jeopardizing the growth of the beedi sector,” remarked Mr Rao.

The Telangana minister has made several suggestions to the GST Council. Later, Mr Rao met Ms Nirmala Sitharaman and submitted a memorandum to the Union Finance Minister.

Cut in Corporate Tax to dent Telangana revenues

Telangana Planning Commission vice-chairman Mr Vinod Kumar said that the cut in corporate tax would keep the pressure on revenues of Telangana. However, he welcomed the decision made by Ms Nirmala Sitharaman, Union Finance Minister.

“The latest decision of the NDA government will result in 1.45 lakh crore revenue deficit at the Centre. Subsequently, the Centre will further reduce the share of states. Telangana government has procured land for Pharma City. The Telangana government has prepared a comprehensive plan for industrial development at the districts. With the announcement of a cut in corporate tax, the state government is forced to reduce few schemes owing to financial constraint,” added Mr Vinod Kumar.