CM urged to request Centre to exempt weaving industry from GST

SALAM: The Tamil Nadu Powerloom Federation Limited has urged the Chief Minister to request the Centre to exempt weaving industry from the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

A delegation of the Federation led by its president M. S. Mathivanan called on Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami at the Secretariat and presented the petition in the presence of Handlooms Minister O. S. Manian and Transport Minister M. R. Vijayabaskar.

In the petition, Mr. Mathivanan stated that no central excise, sales tax or service tax was levied on the weaving industry so far in the country, as the yarn used in weaving process was already taxed. Tax was again paid for the fabric at the processing stage.

Now for the first time, the weaving industry had been brought under tax net with the introduction of GST. This would jeopardise the entire textile industry which was under unorganised sector involving small and tiny weavers. By exempting the weaving industry from GST, the Centre would not suffer much loss as the tax levied on the yarn and weaving would be credited when it was processed.

The weaving units under the GST would not be able to buy the yarn from the mills and also sell the fabric in the market as they were registered under the new Act.

A majority of the weavers were illiterates and cannot follow the rigid system of registering and furnishing the returns online.