Govt justifies tax revision
By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: The State Government has justified the multiple hike in vehicular taxes saying the tax in neighbouring states like Assam is even higher.
“The Government has decided to hike the vehicular taxes after studying the tax pattern in other neighbouring states including Assam,” Commissioner of Tax Jopthiaw Lyngdoh told reporters on Wednesday.
The revised tax in the State is quite less than the tax levied by Assam way back in 2005, Lyngdoh pointed out.
As per the new rates in the State, the tax for a passenger vehicle of less than 14 HP (Horse Power) and with price under Rs 3 lakh is 2.5 per cent of the vehicle’s price besides the quarterly tax of Rs 4000, the Commissioner said adding, Assam had imposed three per cent tax on the same category vehicles with a quarterly tax of Rs 5000 in 2005.
Vehicles above 14 HP and with price
range of Rs 3 lakh to 15 lakh in Meghalaya will now have to pay three per cent tax besides the quarterly tax of Rs 6000 while in Assam the same category vehicles had been paying four per cent tax besides the quarterly tax of Rs 7000 since 2005, Lyngdoh said.
“Since the vehicular taxes in the State are quite low, vehicle owners from Assam tend to register their vehicles with the DTO at Nongpoh to ease their tax burden,” the Commissioner said.
“We have just woken up and we don’t want that people from outside the State to enjoy on our taxes,” Lyngdoh added.
When asked as to why public views were not sought before going for the tax revision, the Commissioner said, “Soon after a Cabinet meeting, the Transport department had issued a notice in public domain asking for queries on the new rates but only two applications came up with their suggestions.”
There was a hue and cry in the State soon after the four-to-five times hike in the vehicular taxes with transporters even threatening strike against the revised rates.
The KSU, JSU and local taxis associations have already given a week’s deadline to the Government to review its decision.
On the reported allegation that the Transport department was never consulted by the Tax Force for Resource Mobilisation before preparing its recommendations on the tax revision, the Commissioner of Tax said the recommendations were cleared by not only the Transport department but also the Finance and the Law departments before being tabled in the Cabinet.
The State Government will earn revenue of around Rs 10-12 crore annually with the hike in the vehicular taxes.