The West Bengal jute industry apprehends financial losses of around Rs 15 crore following stoppage of the preparation of export shipping bills due to sudden agitation by a section of the employees of Calcutta customs department since November 19.The movement has already affected export of 6,000 tonne of jute goods.
Nirmal Pujara, chairman, Calcutta Jute Fabrics Shippers Association (CJFSA), expressing concern over the situation, said yesterday that a large number of loaded containers had been held up at the docks for want of shipping bills.
If the containers were not connected with the vessels immediately, many exporters would face cancellation of contracts leading to heavy financial losses, Pujara added.
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Calcutta Jute Fabrics Shippers Association chairman said that representations had already been made to the commissioner of customs, Calcutta seeking his immediate intervention in the matter. Representations have also been made to the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) by CJFSA.
Meanwhile, the Gunny Trades Association (GTA) has urged the central government to revise its decision on exempting the jute industry from payment of service tax under the central excise law.
Ashish C Doshi, president, GTA, in a statement said that the government had brought the services rendered by transport operators under the service tax net by a notification on November 5 this year, and making the consignee responsible for remitting the tax and complying with the procedural obligations under the excise law.
He said that members of the jute goods trade were strongly protesting against enforcement of the governments notification as they were hard hit by the law.They were opposing the discriminatory treatment meted out to them by shifting the onus of remitting the tax to the taker of the service, contrary to the provisions made in respect of 18 other category of services where the onus lay on the provider of the services.
Doshi said that implementation of the notification would do immense harm to the economy of the jute industry by hindering the trade at a time when the sector was struggling hard to survive against odds. The retrograde provision would also affect the jute goods trade both on the domestic and the international fronts, he added.