Morcha seeks N-E tax relief - Gurung and team meet pranab and shinde

 TT;VIVEK CHHETRI; Darjeeling, Aug. 23: A Gorkha Janmukti Morcha delegation met President Pranab Mukherjee and Union home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde in Delhi today and asked for an extension of all tax benefits, subsidies and tax holidays to the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration similar to what the northeastern states get.

 The seven-member delegation led by GTA chief executive Bimal Gurung also demanded Scheduled Tribe status for all Gorkhas except those from the Schedule Caste community, recruitment of Gorkha youths (Gorkhaland Personnel) and a one-time grant for administrative infrastructure of the hill set-up.

 The one-time grant was mentioned in the memorandum of settlement signed by the Centre, state and the Morcha. “Our delegation met the President and the Union home minister today. We have demanded that the GTA should be given all the tax benefits, subsidies and tax holidays enjoyed by the northeastern states, although we are not members of the North East Council,” said Roshan Giri, an executive member of the GTA and also the general secretary of the Morcha.

 He said the delegation told the Centre that the GTA region was as backward like the northeastern states and deserved special concessions. “We have demanded that all Gorkhas, except the SC community, should be given tribal status and have also asked for the release of a one time grant for setting up the GTA secretariat, administrative offices and quarters for GTA Sabha members.

 We believe that more than Rs 100 crore would be needed to put the administrative infrastructure in place. A request has also been made for immediate release of the Rs 200 crore package for the GTA,” Giri said.

 The GTA memorandum states Rs 200 crore would be provided to the hill set-up annually for three years for development work. According to sources, Shinde has assured the Morcha delegation that the Centre will extend all help.

 The department of industrial policy and promotion has extended a number of incentives and concessions to the Northeast. According to the website of the ministry of development of north eastern region, there is a scheme for the region, under which subsidies of 50 to 90 per cent are given to entrepreneurs on transportation costs of raw material and finished goods from designated rail routes to industrial units. In 1996,

 the Centre had announced that at least 10 per cent of the annual budgets of all central ministers and their departments would be earmarked for the development of the northeastern states. Integrated Infrastructure Development Centres in the Northeast have been declared tax-free zones. All industrial activities in these areas are free of income tax, excise duty and get exemption in sales tax and municipal tax subject to the respective state government’s approval.

 In the tourism sector, schemes have been extended to the northeastern states like LTA for central government staff to visit the region. On the issue of granting ST status to all Gorkhas except those who have a Scheduled Caste status, sources said over 100 cases of communities wanting an ST status were pending in the ministry of tribal affairs.