PANAJI
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant in his budget has proposed a 'single point taxation' process for the liquor industry, a major source of revenue for the State.
Sawant said, it was a demand made by the industry that the government collect tax (excise duty and VAT) at a single point, that is, at the wholesale point and that the industry itself will shoulder the responsibility of collecting the taxes at the second and third point of sale.
Additionally, Sawant said excise duties will also be rationalised and the slabs will be reduced to a maximum of five. He also said that a single-window tax payment system will be adopted to implement the single-point taxation proposed by the industry.
In another move that will rid the liquor industry and trade of evasion of excise duties, Sawant said, he proposes to introduce hologram markers on packed bottles of alcohol this year. He also said that excise duty rates will henceforth be notified on an annual basis.
