Bangalore: Abolition of Trade/Health Licenses from Local Bodies Demanded

From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore

Bangalore, Feb 21: Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI), Karnataka Small Scale Industries Association (KASSIA) and several other trade bodies have urged the State Government to abolish the practice of seeking trade/health licenses from local bodies for carrying out business.

Participating in a pre-budget meeting held under the chairmanship of Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa on Saturday, FKCCI president Jacob Crasta said local bodies have been insisting upon a trade/health licenses which would be an additional burden on the industry, particularly for the financially weak medium and small entrepreneurs.

When the industrial units have been obtaining necessary licenses from various statute bodies, Crasta wanted to know the rationale behind insisting on further licences. ``The need of the hour is simplification, rationalization and doing away with the licence raj that was a legacy of colonial regime,’’ he said.

Pointing out that the Central and State governments were bending backwards to  promote industries to solve the unemployment problem, the KKCCI chief said insisting on trade licenses by the local bodies will be detrimental factor for industrial growth.

Keeping in view of the larger contribution from the industry, the FKCCI and KASSIA have urged the Government to discontinue the procedure of trade license/health licenses for medium and small entrepreneurs.

KASSIA president M C Dinesh said the trade license was neither rational nor uniform. It is not related to any purchase or services provided.

The industrial bodies also demanded scrapping of property tax on open space in the industrial plots.

Underlining the need for charting out a roadmap for reduction in cross subsidy, they said subsidy should be meaningful indicator for investors planning to set up their industries in Karnataka. They also requested waiver of stamp duty and purchase of industrial sheds and land from one industry to another for furtherance of business.

Both bodies also suggested that pollution control fees should only be levied on the effluents discharged by the particular industry and not based on their investment on land and buildings, plants and machinery.

The trade and industries bodies appealed to the Government not to further burden the business and common man by increasing the VAT rates and imposing new levies.

The chief minister, who is also handling the finance portfolio and is all set to present his fifth consecutive budget on March 5, said he has taken note of all demands of the industrial bodies and would try his best to accommodate them in the budget.

Top officials of the Industries Department attended the meeting. 

Karnataka sets up panel for fixing SAP for Sugarcane:

Meanwhile, the state government has set up a Technical Committee to guide it on fixation of state advisory price (SAP) for sugarcane in the wake of demand by growers for a higher price, according to the Commissioner for Sugarcane Development and Directorate of Sugar

The committee would be headed by former Vice-Chancellor of Dharwad Agricultural University S A Patil and submit its report to the government after studying the model adopted by other states while fixing state advisory price.

The decision to set up the committee was taken on the direction of Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, who had earlier this month held discussion with farmers represantatives on the demand for higher price by growers.

Incidentally, Karnataka’s cooperation minister Laxman Savdi said all the 12 milk unions in the State, barring that of Kolar, have earned profit. The Kolar Milk Union reported loss and all other unions registered profit as on December 31, 2009.

The Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) has earned a profit of Rs 9.86 crore, he said.

The profits earned by milk unions is: Bangalore and Mysore – Rs 5crore each, Mandya – Rs 7.47 crore, Dharwad – Rs 1.33 crore, Belgaum – Rs 90 lakh, Hassan – Rs 3.48 crore, Tumkur – Rs 2.95 crore, Dakshina Kannada – Rs 2.39 crore, Shimoga – Rs 1.46 crore, Gulbarga – Rs 9 lakh, Bellary – Rs 79 lakh and Bijapur – Rs 74 lakh.

Asked why the KMF and milk unions were insisting on burdening the public when their financial position was sound, the minister argued that the price hike was inevitable in view of the high cost fodder and other materials. The hike would be Rs 2 per litre of milk from March 1, he said.

However, a final decision on the hike would be taken after consultations with Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, he added.