No trade tax on vehicles in Mulayam's village

Tax waived on vehicles to be bought during Sefai festival

UP Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav's village Sefai in the Etawah district will become a tax haven from December 21.

The Uttar Pradesh government has announced waiving trade tax on all categories of vehicles, including luxury cars, two-wheelers, and tractors purchased during the Sefai festival. The Sefai festival was inaugurated by Yadav today. It will conclude on December 27.

This is the second successive occasion that the state government is giving this exemption during the Safai festival. During the previous festival of January 17-25 this year, the state exchequer lost Rs 14 crore on account of the waiver of trade tax on 7,222 vehicles sold during the Safai festival.

Official sources said this year the state government was expected to lose Rs 20 crore because of the waiver. This is because people are aware of the benefits after last year's bonanza. At present the UP government imposes 12 per cent as trade tax on all vehicles and their spares, while for tractors it is 5 per cent.

With the waiver of trade tax on vehicles, prospective buyers can save from Rs 36,000 to Rs 2.7 lakh on the purchase of four-wheelers from the special stalls being put up by auto majors in Sefai. Tax saving on a Skoda car will be as much as Rs 2.7 lakh. The proposal for granting exemption from trade tax is before the Cabinet and is expected to be approved by December 20.

"Big auto companies have started advertising benefits ranging from Rs 36,000 to over Rs 2.7 lakh on a vehicle purchased at the Safai festival, which is expected to get visitors from Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, and Rajasthan," a senior executive of a four-wheeler company here said.

For promoting sales of vehicles during the festival, the state government has made arrangements for temporary registrations of vehicles in Etawah. The district magistrate of Etawah has been asked to appoint an officer to monitor the process.

During the last Safai mahatsov, vehicles of Rs 118 crore were sold. The main attraction was four-wheelers, when 2,390 vehicles were sold, amounting to Rs 98.60 crore, and the tax waived was Rs 12 crore.

Also, 4,696 two-wheelers were sold, amounting to Rs 15.83 crore, and the state government took a hit of Rs 1.89 crore as trade tax. And, 119 tractors and 17 three-wheelers were sold, amounting to Rs 3.37 crore, and on which over Rs 17 lakh trade tax was waived.

Again, the state government lost Rs 3.58 lakh on account of automobile spare parts worth Rs 30 lakh sold. Drugs and medicines were also exempted from trade tax. The waiver of the 8 per cent tax amounted to Rs 9,878, on sales of medicines worth Rs 1.25 lakh.

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SOPS GALORE

This is the second time the state govt is doling out sops on the festival

In last year's festival, the state govt lost Rs 14 crore on 7,222 vehicles sold

This year, the loss anticipated is Rs 20 crore

Tax saving on Skoda car will be as much as Rs 2.7 lakh