KOCHI: The Indian Association of Amusement Parks and Industries (Kerala Chapter) has sought a slash in GST rate from 28 per cent to 12 per cent since the “new tax regime was hurting the industry quite badly”.Capt T S Asokan, managing director, Fantasy Park, said it was shocking the services provided by water theme parks was put in the same tax bracket of five-star hotels and casinos.
“The introduction of GST at a higher rate of 28 per cent has put the very existence of the amusement-theme park industry in peril. Middle-class people constitute a majority of its customers, including government schools, Kudumbashree, anganvadi and the like. For schools in Kerala, amusement parks are a safe destination where parents and teachers can send their children without fear for annual tour programmes,” Asokan said.
According to the association, the industry is highly capital-intensive and its operational cost is also high. Being a labour-intensive industry, the sector generates high employment directly or indirectly. Further, with the advent of new technology, the rides in the parks become obsolete within a short span.
The industry does not consume major raw materials and input credit, which can be availed of from the purchases, is not more than three per cent. Therefore, it makes the amusement industry unviable to sustain such high GST rate. The GST rates in Australia are 10 per cent, Singapore 7 per cent, Malaysia 6 per cent and Japan 5 per cent. “The high rate of GST will ruin the industry. It should be reduced from 28 per cent to 12 per cent,” the association stated. They also sought to exempt the tours of schools and other educational institutions from the levy of GST and to classify parks in different categories as done in the case of the restaurant industry.