Seminar on `Value Added Tax' held in Tuticorin

The Department of Information and Public Relations organised a seminar on `Value Added Tax' in Tuticorin on Saturday(3rd,March) evening. This was part of the multi-media campaign launched by the district administration to highlight the achievements of the State Government.

Interacting with industrialists and the general public, S. Sukumaran, Deputy Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, said that a sum of Rs. 11 crore was generated as VAT revenue from Tirunelveli division, comprising Tuticorin, Tirunelveli, Virudhunagar and Kanyakumari districts during January this year, the first month of its inception.

A total of Rs. 22 crore was utilised as input tax credit by registered dealers during January, of which input tax credit availed from the opening stock stood at Rs. 16 crore and the remaining from purchase. "As traders were allowed to take credit of input tax paid at the time of purchase, VAT will not have any cascading effect on prices," he said. V. Balusamy, Deputy Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, explained how VAT was beneficial to the traders because of its transparency. "It has been proven in the countries, where VAT was implemented, that there was a heavy flow of revenue to the Government," he said.

The introduction of VAT has facilitated a simplified compounding tax system for the traders who have a turnover less than Rs 50 lakh per annum, by which only 0.5 percent was levied as tax.

The rates of interest under VAT are fixed at one percent, four per cent and 12.5 percent on goods eligible for input tax credit.

A full-fledged VAT is in essence an ad valorem tax levied on the supply chain from production to distribution and retail.

D.R. Kodeeswaran, Secretary, Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Tuticorin, and A. Deivanayakam, Assistant Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, took part in the discussion.

Source: The Hindu