Induction furnace assn delegation meets Punjab CM

Ludhiana, December 15

A delegation of the Induction Furnace Associations of North India met Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Charanjit Singh Channi today in Chandigarh.

Association members said they were thankful that in the last four years the steel industry had flourished due to the friendly industrial policy of the Punjab Government. Many new units had come up in the state and many more are in pipeline, they added. The delegation discussed several vital issues with the CM.

Members said their main concern was that manufacturers of steel were buying required scrap against tax invoice. There remained an uncertainty over whether tax paid on purchase of scrap was deposited by the seller with exchequer or not, members added.

“It is not only resulting in revenue loss in some cases, but also portrays genuine buyers as tainted as far as purchases and input credit is concerned,” said delegation members.

“The best alternative to stem the bogus billing and to avoid hardship to genuine buyers of steel scrap is that the GST on scrap should be reduced to 2.5 per cent-5 per cent so that there is no incen rupulous dealers to evade tax,” members delegation added.

“In turn the government will get due GST payment @ 18 per cent from manufacturers/furnace industry on their final product as output,” said delegation members.

“The Punjab Government is levying tax after tax on power. The rates of such taxes are being raised arbitrarily. It badly hits state’s steel industry, which is already facing huge crisis. The tax rate should be nominal,” delegation members added.

KK Gupta, association president, said, “Steel prices are fixed according to the situation of the market on the basis of demand and supply. Generally the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), a Government of India enterprise, fixes steel rates for a specific period. The rates are available on its websites.”

“SAIL fixes the rate of steel material on the basis of demand and supply and after considering the market situation. The SMS service providers, who are neither manufacturers nor authorised by any competent authority to fix and circulate steel rates, are fraudulently circulating fake/wrong and frivolous steel prices through their mobile phones every 15 minutes. There is no market in the world, where steel prices change every 15 minutes. The main purpose of such persons is only to play ‘Satta’ on steel prices deliberately circulated by them. This SMS service needs to be checked and stopped,” Gupta added. — TNS