Bring 10 more items under VAT exemption in JK

A day ahead of the meeting of the inter-ministerial empowered committee on VAT, the Federation Chamber of Industries Kashmir (FCIK) and Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) Thursday jointly demanded that ten more items be brought into the ambit of value added tax (VAT) exemption in J&K.

Finance ministers of all the states are attending the meet to be chaired by the chairman of the empowered committee Asim Dasgupta on Friday.

The heads of FCIK and KCCI argue that even as the empowered committee has exempted 10 items of local importance in every state from VAT, in respect of J&K it should extend the list to 20.

“Given that the J&K state comprises of three distinct zones, its items of local importance do vary from one zone to another. So in order to accommodate maximum number of items of local importance the empowered committee should extend its list from ten to twenty in case of J&K,” said president FCIK Shakeel Qalandar.

“We want 10 more items from the handicraft sector like shawls and carpets be bought in the VAT exemption,” Qalandar told Greater Kashmir.

The empower committee has been constituted by the government of India to oversee the working of the VAT regime throughout the country. “FCIK and KCCI want the committee to look into the discrepancy in the state,” he added.

“Carpet and Shawl industry have a great local importance in the Valley, so we want them to be bought under the ambit of 0 per cent VAT,” President KCCI, Dr Mubeen Shah said.

“Our export trade of the carpets and shawls is being affected by the imposition of VAT,” he added.

Dr Mubeen said: “The committee has the powers to bring these items in zero per cent VAT, so we have great expectations with the committee.”

Meanwhile, the FCIK has demanded the declaration of the Form-C should also be withdrawn.

“One time exemption should be granted to the state entrepreneurs,” Dr Mubeen said.