E-Paper
Ludhiana: Industry body calls for removal of stamp duty on loans
The delegation also flagged that industries on Gill Road (towards Malerkotla) at Rania village were not getting consent to operate from Punjab Pollution Control Board
A Federation of Industrial and Commercial Organisations (FICO) delegation led by president Gurmeet Singh Kular met minister for industries and commerce Sanjeev Arora to demand the removal of stamp duty and hypothecation charges on loans and discuss other issues faced by the industry. Hypothecation charges are paid on the value of the property mortgaged against the loan.
The Punjab government levies a stamp duty of 0.25 per cent of the loan amount for loans sanctioned by banks/ loan crediting companies. Additionally, in the case of hypothecation and equitable mortgage, the 0.25 per cent is charged separately for both.
FICO, in a press release, said, “It has been a prolonged demand of the industry that the stamp duty and hypothecation duty should be waived off, as the industry already bears a hefty burden in terms of various taxes.”
These added charges, the industry body argues, have an adverse effect on the ease of doing business in Punjab. It is requested that the government of Punjab should waive the said duties with immediate effect.
It also called for removing the ₹200 professional tax per month levied by the state government. It asked,” When an assessee is paying the income tax, then why put an additional burden in the form of professional tax, with hefty penalties and fines on non-payment?”
The discussion also featured denotifying the plots of land marked but not acquired by Punjab Small Industries and Export Corporation (PSIEC) during the development of Focal Point. The body said that there are some plots which were never acquired by PSIEC, nor have their owners received any payment from PSIEC. “Such plots should not be kept under the PSIEC layout. Also, their Khasra Numbers must also be de-notified from PSEIC records with immediate effect,” it demanded.
One of the prominent points of discussion was also the permanent solutions to industrial establishments in mixed land use areas. The Punjab Government has extended the consent of industries to operate in the mixed land use areas till September 2026. But this extension, FICO argued, doesn’t resolve the issue. It proposed a free land bank with certain provisions to facilitate shifting.
“There is no way that the industry can be shifted. In case the government actually wants to shift the industry, they need to provide a free land bank, free of cost shifting of the power connection, and a special package for shifting of industries. A dedicated road map should be finalised and subsidy on capital investment must also be provided,” read the release.
It also asked for extension of fiscal incentive to new industries with existing GST. It said that the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) do not allow new vendors. If any member invests in a new unit with an existing GST number, then the same benefits must be allowed to him as to that of the new GST number.
The delegation also flagged that industries on Gill Road (towards Malerkotla) at Rania village were not getting consent to operate from Punjab Pollution Control Board. They requested the minister to intervene and restore consent to operate.
