By IANS,
Mumbai : Wholesale trade in all commodities in Maharashtra will grind to a halt Tuesday following a strike against a proposed hike in Value Added Tax (VAT).
The strike has been called by the Federation of Associations of Maharashtra (FAM).
All the major wholesale markets in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Nashik and other district headquarters would remain shut for the day, a FAM officie bearer said here Monday.
“The strike has the support of over 700 different associations across the state and their 600,000-plus members,” FAM General Secretary Arun Doshi told IANS.
The FAM is demanding a rollback in the hike in VAT rate, proposed to be increased from 4 to 5 percent, and the proposed 5 percent VAT on essential commodities.
Doshi said nearly 35 percent of all items consumed in the state were brought in from other states like Punjab, Haryana and Andhra Pradesh, and levying the additional taxes would “snatch the bread of the common man.”
Moreover, he said the government has now proposed a five percent tax even on essential items which were until now exempt from taxes.
Retailers in the state are not joining the strike, but Doshi said they had lent their moral support to the agitation.
Doshi cautioned that if the state government failed to meet the demands, the trading community would consider a prolonged action, including a total halt to wholesale and retail trade in the state, after the state budget later this week.
Some retailers said that Tuesday’s strike could partially affect supplies in the market though it may not immediately lead to a spurt in prices of commodities.