CAPF canteens in the red; petition govt for GST relief

Paramilitary forces have sounded alarm bells saying over 1,700 of their canteens, used by lakhs of troops and their families to run their daily households, may soon have to down their shutters if they are not provided GST "exemption" similar to the defence-run CSDs.
A senior official involved in the running of these country-wide canteens, called Central Police Canteens (CPCs), said stocks of groceries, daily kitchen goods and other miscellaneous items have dipped to an all-time low as there is no clarity for their operations after the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
"The stocks are in the red. The government has been petitioned time and again about the exemptions required to run these subsidised canteens for jawans, but there has been no final decision.

"A number of CPCs are now running on low stocks as no new procurement is happening. If no GST concession is allowed like that for defence canteens then the entire CPC system that runs on subsidised tax rates for troops will stop," the official said.
This PTI correspondent visited a CPC based in the national capital and found that stocks of goods were low and the staff manning the desk said "there is no clarity after GST came into force".
Affected by the development, an association of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) veterans has threatened protests against the "step motherly" treatment and has said it will "picket" all the headquarters of these forces on August 18.

The association has also written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking his personal intervention in this "kitchen budget" crisis being faced by lakhs of personnel and their families belonging to forces like the BSF, CRPF, ITBP, CISF, and SSB.

Central police organisations like the CBI, NDRF, NIA, and SPG also purchase items from these canteens.
"The imposition of GST on the CPC has put the members of these organisations in crisis of kitchen budget," the All India Central Paramilitary Forces Ex-Servicemen Welfare Association wrote.
It also also appended to the PM, a recent letter written in this context by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh to his Finance counterpart Arun Jaitley.

Singh, in his letter on June 29, has sought exemption from the Goods and Services Tax (GST) for the CPCs saying if such a concession is not granted to these canteens then the CAPF personnel would face "financial hardships".
He said exemption from GST will act to boost the "morale" of these jawans who render selfless service to the nation.
"In the prevailing system of the CPC, major relief to CAPF personnel and the families comes from exemption of VAT provided by state governments.
"GST exemptions to CAPFs and state police personnel through CPCs will provide great relief to the troops and their families and will mitigate their financial burdens," Singh had said in his letter to Jaitley.

The home minister said it has come to his notice that 50 per cent concession is provided on applicable GST rate on supplies to the Canteen Stores Department (CSD) of the defence forces.
"Hence, similar concessions may also be provided to the CPCs," Singh had said.
"But, nothing has happened and as usual the paramilitary society is compelled to swallow the bitterness of the step motherly attitude of the government," the association wrote in its letter, also sent to Jaitley and other senior government functionaries.
General secretary of the confederation of retired paramilitary welfare association Ranbir Singh told PTI that they have been seeking "exemption for the central police canteens from the GST and have submitted a number of memorandums to the authorities".

"We will hold a day-long hunger strike at the Rajghat in Delhi on August 9 demanding GST exemption for CPCs and other pending demands," Ranbir said.
The CPCs were established in 2006 and during 2016-17, their annual turnover was Rs 1,607 crore.
A total of 456 firms are on contract with the CPCs to supply items ranging from a needle to a car for jawans and officers of these forces.
At present, there are 119 master canteens and 1,625 subsidiary canteens at various locations where these forces are deployed, be it along borders or the interiors of Naxal violence-hit states.