Chandigarh, June 7: To address the concerns of industry going through liquidity crunch in Punjab, the state government has decided to clear long-pending value added tax (VAT) refunds worth Rs 840 crore before the year end.
Punjab industries and commerce minister Sunder Sham Arora told TOI, “We have decided to release an amount of Rs 300 crore after every two months so that we can clear all the pending refunds by December.”
As per records, VAT refunds amounting to Rs 245 crore are pending with the government. However, pending VAT refunds to the tune of Rs 595 crore are under the ongoing verification process. Non-refund of industrialists’ pending VAT and GST refunds had forced them to take loans to cover overhead charges.
Arora said the state government has already made VAT refunds amounting to Rs 309 crore and Goods and Service Tax (GST) to the tune of Rs 30 crore to the industries in the months of April and May. At the same time, the state government is going to organize a ‘Refund Fortnight’ from May 31 to June 14 to clear pending GST refund claims filed before April 30.
Hit by the slowdown following a shift in the tax regime in July last year, Punjab industrialists have been protesting against the state government for non-release of their pending VAT refunds as well as GST claims.
G S Kahlon, president of Auto Parts Manufacturers Association (APMA), said, “Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) have been badly affected by the introduction of GST as well as non-release of the pending VAT refunds since 2016-17.”
Kahlon said auto parts industry has to deposit 28% GST and the industrialists have been left with very less capital to carry on their business. The industries minister had visited Ludhiana on May 10 and during a meeting with various industries associations he was also apprised of the industry being hit by the escalating iron and steel prices, said Kahlon.
President of the 400-member Fastener Manufacturers Association of India (FMAI), Narinder Bhamra, said industrialists had been meeting various ministers in the state government time and again.
“They say the previous government has left the state coffers empty and the central government is not releasing Punjab’s share in time,” rued Bhamra. Raising various questions, Bhamra said industrialists feel rather than refunding their pending VAT and GST claims, the state government is diverting funds for other purpose.
Source Times of India
