K Chandrasekhar Rao writes to Narendra Modi on GST

Hyderabad: Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union finance minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday sought exemption for works covered under beedi and granite industries and works under irrigation and drinking water projects.

Mr Chandrasekhar Rao, while expressing his concern, said that several thousands of workers sustain on the beedi industry and as such, imposing excess taxes on the industry will adversely impact the beedi workers.

Pointing out the GST Council has proposed 12 per cent GST on Granite and Marble raw blocks and 28 per cent GST on finished products, the Chief Minister said that there are about 2,000 granite processing units in TS providing direct employment to nearly two lakh and indirectly five lakh people.

“Such high rates of GST will have a detrimental effect on demand and growth of granite industry and negative impact on trade and reduce the employment potentially leading to closing down of most of the units in the state,” Mr Chandrasekhar Rao wrote.

He said that the state government has taken up a number of massive infrastructure programmes including the prestigious Mission Bhagiratha drinking water project and irrigation projects with huge investments.

“The proposed GST on these will increase the cost of the projects substantially,” Mr Chandrasekhar Rao said, adding that it would be appropriate to bring them under exempted category or at least put them in the lower GST slab of 5 per cent as they are all intended for larger public welfare.