Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 31: The decision of J&K Government to abolish the road tariff at Lakhanpur Toll Plaza on Jammu-Pathankot Highway, from January 1, 2020 has been strongly opposed by the local industrialists who argued that it would be a death knell for the local industry.
Raising serious concern over the cease of Toll Tax at Lakhanpur Toll Plaza, Bari Brahmana Industries Association (BBIA) president Lalit Mahajan said this is an attempt to destroy the Industrial Sector of J&K which is working in spite of all the odds and facing militancy since last 30 years, besides facing stiff competition from the manufacturers/traders from outside the State due to additional cost of transportation of raw materials, locational disadvantages and shallow market.
“It will also allow the import/export of unaccounted goods in/from the State which may be resulting huge financial loss to the State exchequer as well as to the Industrial Sector of J&K,” he asserted and added that post GST Regime, the import of industrial goods from outside the State has been increased many fold, which were being manufactured by local sons of the Soil by setting up of their units with the investment of their hard earn money and running with the capacity of 25 to 30 % in post GST Regime.
Mahajan said with the removal of Toll Tax, the Unit Holders will have no option but to close down their units which may be resulting in to the conversion of their working capital/Term Loan in NPA, Mass Scale Retrenchment of around four lakh Industrial Labour directly/Indirectly employed in Industrial Sector, loss of Crores of rupees power revenue to Government due to Closure of Units, negative impact on the economy of J&K.
“With this move of Government, J&K will now be flooded with the unaccounted goods and other related material which will prove as death nail for the local Industrial Sector,” he said and appealed Lt Governor G C Murmu to continue toll tax on the industrial products being manufactured by the local industrial units being run by sons of the soil.
Rattan Dogra, chairman Federation of Industries, Jammu and president, Federation of Industries, Gangyal also questioned the Government order for removal of Toll Tax at Lakhanpur, saying that the benefit of this will never go to consumer instead local industries will ruin.
“In past that as and when Government exempted some consumer products from the payment of Toll Tax, the benefit never passed on to the consumers as majority of the products are being supplied by the domestic/multi-national companies on MRP basis in which the toll tax is already included,” Dogra claimed.
He said they requested repeatedly to the authorities not to abolish the toll tax but they paid no heed to their requests. “Now we will be treated at par with outside industries while the cost of production of ours is more in comparison to them as we have to import most of the raw material. On the top of that there is no market and we have to export products. Thus, local industry cannot sustain,” Dogra added.
He demanded the Government to either compensate the local industry periodically or roll back the decision of abolition of Toll Tax immediately.
Similar reaction also came from Devinder Verma, president of Industries Association, Kathua, who said that with the abolition of Toll Tax, there will be no check on the illegal transportation of goods from outside J&K. He said this decision of the Government will kill the local industries which are already running in losses.
“The industries which will be most affected with abolition of toll tax are cement industry, steel industry, paper mill, animal feed industry and glass industry as the entire raw material for these industries come from outside the J&K and most of the finished goods are again sell outside J&K,” Verma said.
He said there are about 50 cement factories across J&K and on an average about 700-800 workers are working in a factory but after abolition of Toll Tax, the direct affect will be on these workers as after suffering losses, which is impended, these units will have to reduce strength of workers.
Verma urged the UT Government to continue with toll tax or announce some kind of package to compensate the local industry on account Toll Tax abolishment.
Opposing strongly the toll tax abolishment at Lakhanpur, Vijay Aggarwal, president, Association of Industries, Samba, said Government has ignored completely the points raised by the local industrialists while reaching this decision, which will have adverse consequences on local industries.
“It is a setback to the local industrial sector and the Government should immediately withdraw this order or announced some incentives to protect the local industry but the incentives should be such that they won’t have to make rounds of the Government departments to avail them,” Aggarwal said.
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