By IANS
Shimla : Himachal Pradesh government is preparing a list of non-manufacturing industrial units in the state as the centre has decided to end their excise tax holiday.
The union finance ministry has decided to withdraw the excise exemptions for units in Himachal Pradesh and neighbouring Uttarakhand, which are not manufacturing goods but only carrying out cleaning operations, packing, repacking, labelling and sorting.
The latest notification issued Jan 18 would mainly hit the booming pharmaceutical industry, many of which are involved in non-manufacturing activities.
The withdrawal of the tax holiday for non-manufacturing units is expected to pave the way for a better coordination between the excise department and the industries department, and handling cases of excise exemption for units involved in the non-manufacturing sector, said a state government official.
“This decision by the centre will not impact majority of the industry here,” said Rajendra Guleria, chairman, Confederation of Indian Industry, Himachal Pradesh unit.
The previous National Democratic Alliance government had announced an industrial package for Himachal and Uttarakhand in January 2003, which was to continue till 2010.
Ever since the excise holiday was announced, the state has attracted proposed investments of Rs.260 billion ($6.58 billion).