Pizza not taxed lower than peanut brittle, clarifies Nirmala Sitharaman
Madurai: Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman denied that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) for pizza was pegged lower than that of peanut brittle.
Quashing social media messages that the Centre’s GST for peanut brittle was 18 per cent, much higher than just 5 per cent for pizzas, the minister said, “people need to understand that GST for pizza that are sold at restaurants is 18 per cent and five per cent GST is only for pizza breads which are used for making pizzas either in home or a eatery”
The minister was speaking at an interaction with business and industry representatives here on Sunday on GST issues. The local Central Excise commissioner, R. Saravana Kumar, present at the meeting clarified that GST for ‘peanut brittle’ was only five per cent.
Giving a patient hearing to the grievances of traders and industrialists, Nirmalaji said their concerns will be taken into account and that she would make recommendation to the GST council to change tax slabs for traditional foods like 'Idli batter' made in cottage industry, tax variation for virgin and recycled plastic products, for mechanized and semi-skill match box makers, hollow blocks and for recycled gunny bags.
Urging the small and medium businessmen to registrar under GST, she said that GST was aimed at monitoring 85 per cent of informal economy of the country which now functions without any banking transactions. “We are sending satellites to mars, implementing welfare schemes, but where will money come from,” she asked.
“But now we have introduced compensation for the manufacturing states and both the Central and states government will get equal revenue from GST,” she pointed out.
Nirmala also urged the commissioner of Central Excise to conduct more awareness meetings to educate the medium and small businessmen on GST and address their grievances. BJP state secretary R. Srinivasan, party Madurai district president Sasiraman, L Murari, president, Maditssia and R. Sundaram, chartered accountant, were among those who participated in the meet.
