Tax on gutka to be raised from 4 p.c. to 20 p.c.

By Our Special Correspondent

BANGALORE, DEC. 31. The Karnataka Luxury Tax Act is to be amended by the Government to increase the tax on gutka from the present four per cent to 20 per cent.

A decision to this effect was taken by the Cabinet today with a view to discouraging the consumption of gutka, according to the Minister of State for Information, Prof. B.K.Chandrashekar.

He said the Cabinet decided to continue certain concessions such as exemption from payment of earnest money deposit and production of solvency certificate at the time of registration for taking up departmental contracts being given to graduate engineers and diploma holders.

The Cabinet approved the plea of the Dandeli Steel and Ferro Alloys to allow it to purchase power from the surplus quota of National Thermal Power Corporation as it worked out to be cheap.

The Centre had cleared a proposal in this connection and with today's decision the industry which was facing difficulty due to the high power cost of Karnataka Power Transport Corporation Ltd. would get relief.

Prof. Chandrashekar said a proposal of Mukand Iron Ltd. to set up a Rs. 340-crore project at Ginigere in Koppal District had been cleared. The unit had asked for additional incentives such as exemption from Turnover Tax and this had also been okayed.

By another decision, the Cabinet allowed the State lottery network to be computerised as in some other States. This enabled a person to register the purchase of lottery ticket without actually buying one, it was explained.

The Cabinet also decided to accept the request of the IT industry to amend certain provisions in the Shops and Commercial Establishments Act relating to working hours. With this, it would be open to the management and the workers to come to an understanding which will have to be approved by the Government. Certain other demands by the industry would be examined later, he added.

A Rs. 15-crore proposal to provide water supply to some villages near Laxmeshwar town was also approved. Another decision related to the development of minor port at Tadri in Uttara Kannada District. Global tenders had been invited and one of the parties which had come forward was from Korea. The cost of the first phase of the project was Rs. 754 crores apart from the cost of land which was Rs. 18 crores and which would be borne by the Government.

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Section  : Southern States
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