MPs flag livelihood fears for farmers, workers as Lok Sabha debates tobacco tax overhaul
GST
Dated:- 3-12-2025
PTI
New Delhi, Dec 3 (PTI) Some Lok Sabha MPs on Wednesday expressed concern over the impact of the bill that will allow the government to raise taxes on tobacco products, saying it could adversely affect the livelihoods of tobacco farmers and workers, even as they backed measures to curb tobacco consumption. The Central Excise (Amendment) Bill, 2025 seeks to replace the GST compensation cess currently levied on cigarettes, chewing tobacco, cigars, hookah, zarda and scented tobacco, all of which attract a 28 per cent GST plus a variable cess.
Opening the discussion on the bill in the lower house, BJP MP D. Purandes
= = = = = = = =
Plain text (Extract) only
For full text:-Visit the Source
= = = = = = = =
e tobacco industry to other sectors,” he said, warning that steep duty hikes could increase counterfeiting and black markets.
Merely “tinkering” with tax rates, he argued, would not address the structural challenge.
Samajwadi Party MP Naresh Chand Uttam Patel voiced concerns of bidi rollers, leaf-pluckers and small supari growers, saying he was speaking “for the lakhs who break tobacco leaves, who roll bidis under lantern light, who toil day and night in areca nut orchards”.
Their sweat, he said, contributes thousands of crores to the economy each year. Accusing the government of imposing a heavy cess on the poorest, he urged that the Bill be sent to a select committee instead of being “rushed through”.
TMC MP Saugata Roy questioned
= = = = = = = =
Plain text (Extract) only
For full text:-Visit the Source
= = = = = = = =