The bonafide grievances of traders related to the highly-complicated GST system must be addressed by the new government to be formed at the Centre, said Agro Food Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
In a statement, its president S. Rethinavelu said that despite several representations by various trade bodies throughout the country, the previous government did not take steps to address the GST issues. “The GST system, which was brought in to do away with ‘tax terrorism,’ had itself become one, driving away thousands of traders from their livelihood, especially in Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector,” he said.
While taking care of big corporate entities, the interests of MSMEs, which generate 40% of the employment, were brushed off. This led to many MSME units downing shutters, thereby resulting in unemployment, he said.
Commenting on the drawbacks of single party rule in the Centre, he said that most of the time step-motherly treatment was meted out to the States where opposition parties ruled. “For instance, some of the long-pending demands such as upgrading of Madurai airport to international status and expediting the construction of Madurai AIIMS were not listened to by the previous government,” he said.
Besides, the new government should also address issues of farmers. Immediate steps should be taken to rejuvenate tanks, lakes and ‘kanmois’ by desilting them as low water storage was the main reason for the low yield experienced by farmers, Mr. Rethinavelu said.
