Will oppose Centre's plan to levy GST on online transactions, research grants: Minister Atishi
New Delhi, Sep 8: Delhi Finance Minister Atishi on Sunday said the AAP government will oppose the Centre's alleged plan to levy GST on payment gateway transactions below Rs 2,000 and research grants.
The GST Council on Monday is expected to deliberate on a host of issues, including taxation of insurance premiums, the Group of Ministers (GoMs) suggestions on rate rationalisation, and a status report on online gaming.
The council is chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and comprises state ministers.
Addressing a press conference, Atishi said the decision to impose GST (goods and services tax) on online transactions below Rs 2,000 would have severe consequences for numerous startups and small businesses across the country.
She stressed the BJP-led central government's plan would place excessive financial strain on the country's entrepreneurial community.
The minister said the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) dispensation feels that implementing such a tax on smaller transactions will hinder the growth and development of the startup ecosystem and negatively impact the operations of small-scale enterprises.
Atishi said the central government has been continuously saying that it is promoting digital transactions and a cashless economy.
"However, their hypocrisy is evident as the central government is bringing a proposal in the GST Council meeting tomorrow that online transactions below Rs 2,000, which were exempted from GST until now, will now be taxed," she claimed.
"When we buy something online using debit cards, credit cards, or net banking, if our transaction is below Rs 2,000, it is not subject to GST. If the transaction exceeds Rs 2,000, it attracts a GST of 18 per cent on the payment gateway fees," she explained.
This means that small online purchases, made via debit or credit card, will also be taxed. Most of these payments happen through some payment gateway like Razorpay, CCAvenue, or BillDesk, she said.
Atishi said they would also oppose GST on research grants in the meeting.
"No country in the world imposes GST on research grants given to educational institutions because they do not see research as a business, but as an investment in progress of the country," she said.
"All developed countries of the world invest a large part of their GDP in research. But in the last 10 years, under anti-education BJP, the research budget has been reduced from Rs 70,000 crore to Rs 35,000 crore," she said.
She claimed that six educational institutions, including IIT-Delhi and Punjab University, were sent GST notices of Rs 220 crore.
"The government is reducing the research budget and imposing GST on educational institutions if they get research grants from private entities. This is completely wrong and we will demand that research grants given to educational institutions be exempted from GST," she added.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Heavy rain, hailstorms likely to lash Uttarakhand on Tuesday; IMD issues warning
Dehradun/Pithoragarh (PTI): The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a warning for heavy rain and hailstorms across several districts of Uttarakhand on Tuesday, as temperatures remained markedly below normal in the region.
Heavy rainfall is likely at isolated places in Dehradun, Haridwar, Tehri, Pauri, Nainital, Champawat, and Udham Singh Nagar districts. Most places across all districts are expected to receive light to moderate rain or thunderstorms, while higher reaches are likely to witness snowfall, officials said on Monday.
The weather department warned of thunderstorms accompanied by lightning, hail and intense spells of rain in six districts, including Dehradun and Nainital. Gusty winds with speeds reaching 40-50 kmph are also expected at isolated locations in these areas and other hilly districts.
In the state capital, Dehradun, the sky is forecast to remain partly cloudy with light rain and thunderstorms accompanied by gusty winds of 30-40 kmph.
The maximum and minimum temperatures in the city are expected to hover around 31 degrees Celsius and 19 degrees Celsius, respectively.
Maximum temperatures during the past 24 hours remained markedly below normal in the hills and appreciably below normal in the plains. While no significant change in temperature is expected over the next 2-3 days, the IMD predicts a rise of 3-5 degrees Celsius during the subsequent 3-4 days.
Rainfall was recorded in several areas after 8.30 am today, with Ramnagar receiving 31.5 mm and Nainital recording 26.5 mm. Other areas, including Pithoragarh, Khatima and Champawat, also reported moderate precipitation.
Authorities have stopped a batch of 36 Adi Kailash pilgrims at the Dharchula base camp and placed the high-altitude yatra route on high alert following heavy rains and hailstorms in the district on Monday.
Dharchula SDM Ashish Joshi said the pilgrimage was halted due to adverse weather conditions. The issuance of new inner-line passes has been suspended until the weather normalises.
With 1,700 passes issued so far, pilgrims already at higher camps are being monitored for safety, the official added.
