Delhi: Reducing GST on job orders which is currently at 18 percent has been a long-standing demand from industrial associations, opposition parties and the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
Delhi: Reducing GST on job orders which is currently at 18 percent has been a long-standing demand from industrial associations, opposition parties and the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
To reiterate this demand, P R Natarajan, the Coimbatore CPI (M) MP staged a protest along with a few other MPs belonging to the opposition parties outside the Parliament, by holding placards that read, "Withdraw GST on job works."
Other MPs who participated in the protest included K Subbarayan (Tirupur), A Ganeshamoorthy (Erode), A K P Chinnaraj (Namakkal), D Raja (Rajyasabha Member) and MPs from Kerala.
In a tele-conversation with Simplicity, P R Natarajan said, "Thousands of small and micro units were closed down because of GST. We want to raise this issue in the Parliament. GST has not only affected industries from Tamil Nadu but all over India. In order to garner everyone's attention, we staged this protest outside the Parliament. We want our voices to reach the concerned people before the Central budget is announced and hence we staged this protest."
P R Natarajan was critical of the State Government too. "The Tamil Nadu Government tabled a Government policy paper that 50,000 units were closed down in 2017-18, as compared to 2016-17. Micro and small industrial units were closed down because people could not manage the burden of GST with an already crippling industry. Even then, the State Government has not taken any solid step," stressed P R Natarajan.
The MP also questioned the statements made in favour of GST by BJP Ministers. "If GST was so good for the economy, why keep changing the rates every month," he noted.
With the elected representatives raising their voices , the MSMEs are hoping there would be relief from GSTs to protect the remaining units.