GUNTUR: In order to prevent any irregularities and tax evasions, the Bapatla district administration is all set to re-implement the tax slab system for the collection of seigniorage fees on granite blocks consumed at processing units.
The state government, in August 2022, issued GO 58 reintroducing the slab system in a bid to boost the granite industry. Over 220 units in the district have been brought under the tax slab system and the district mining department officials are taking necessary action to make sure the remaining other units are also included in the slab system till now.
The officials aim to complete the process in the next three months.
As many as 500 granite processing units including granite cutting and polishing units are located in Martur, Ballikaruvu, and Santamangaluru areas in the district.
The royalties and taxes on raw materials and cutting and polishing of the granite are imposed on these units based on the usage of single or multi-blades. As part of this, the officials had fixed Rs 22,000 for single-blade and Rs 27,000 for multi-blade units.
Taxes were also fixed for the set for collecting raw materials and processing and sales. The management can acquire 22 cubic meters of raw material for each blade and is permitted for cutting, polishing, and direct exports.
The officials have identified that despite using multi-blade processors, some managements are enrolling for single-blade processes and committing tax evasion.
“The managements should pay the royalties and GST based on the amount of material processed and transported for sales. Stern action would be taken against those who fail to follow the regulations and hefty fines would be imposed on them," the officials informed.