Punjab petrol pump dealers threaten to go on indefinite hunger strike demanding reduction in taxes

Chandigarh, January 23: Presently, in Punjab tax rates on petrol and diesel in Punjab are 37.54 percent and 17.78 percent, respectively. Therefore, Petrol pump owners in Punjab on Monday threatened to go on an indefinite hunger strike from Tuesday raising their demands for reduction in taxes on petrol and diesel.

 

Notably, due to high taxes imposed on the prices of petrol and diesel leads to the smuggling of petroleum products on a large scale which is causing a massive loss to petrol pump owners. Demanding the reduction in taxes on the prices of petrol and diesel, a Petrol pump owners in Punjab threatened state government to go on an indefinite hunger strike.

While addressing a press conference in Chandigarh, Petrol Pump Dealers' Association of Punjab President Paramjit Singh Doaba said that they would intensify their protest by shutting down petrol pumps across the state if CM Captain Amarinder Singh led government does not heed to their demands. Association President Paramjit Singh Doaba also claimed that the high VAT rates on petrol and diesel as compared to neighbouring states had led to the revenue loss of Rs 40,000 crore in last 17 years.

Importantly, Petrol Pump Dealers Association spokesperson said that the inequality in a VAT in comparison to neighbouring Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh has led to lower sales, also causing revenue losses to the tune of Rs 2,000 crore per annum to the Punjab government. “The state's revenue, due to lower sales of petrol and diesel, declined by Rs 190 crore in the first half of 2017-18 in comparison to the corresponding period last year,” he said.

However, the tax rate on petrol in Haryana, HP, Delhi, Chandigarh stand at 26.25, 27, 27, 24.77 percent respectively. While VAT on diesel Haryana, HP, Delhi, Chandigarh stand at 17.22, 16, 17.39 and 16.43 percent, respectively, they said.

Chawla said if VAT and other state levies on petrol in Punjab are reduced from 37.54 percent to 25 percent, there will be a loss of 12.54 percent on the face of it, but the sales will go up by a whopping 100 percent. Chawla also alleged that smuggling of fuel was taking place at the behest of some excise and taxation officers.

Interestingly, the disparity in petrol and diesel prices has particularly hit the businesses of petrol pump owners in the border districts of Sangrur, Patiala, Bathinda, Gurdaspur, Mohali, Fatehgarh Sahib, Ropar, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur and Mansa. Mohali is the worst affected as it borders Chandigarh, where petrol has become cheaper by Rs 8.24 per litre and diesel by Rs 2.23 per litre since the UT administration reduced VAT on both products by 5 percent nearly three months ago.