JAMMU/SRINAGAR: The Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Jammu and Kashmir have deferred the June 4 Jammu Bandh and served seven days ultimatum to the Finance Minister.
The President CCI, Jammu, Rakesh Gupta apprised the members about the rollback announced by the Finance Minister of additional taxes on readymade, hosiery, mobiles and aviation fuel for choppers for Katra Pilgrims and also listed the pending demands of the Chamber as submitted in the pre budget meetings. All the Heads of major Trade and Transport Associations unanimously voiced their anger against the proposed budget and authorised the Chamber to go ahead to any limit to get a complete roll back from the government. The main concern of the members was the steep proposed hike of taxes on processed fruits and vegetables, cable and dish connections, increase in toll tax, multi functional printers and devises, packed foods, stoll and shawls and walnut wood.
Gupta informed the members that the genuine demands given to the Finance Minister at the time of pre budget meeting were mostly not addressed.
It was decided that after the announcement of partial Roll back and the meeting of the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry with the Finance Minister Dr. Haseeb A Drabu, who assured to reconsider the proposed Budget.
“The government be given a chance to re consider Roll back in toto and also reconsider the demands made by the Chamber during pre budget. It was also decided that time bound ultimatum be given to the Finance Minister to discuss the issues with the chambers of Jammu and Kashmir before finalizing the budget proposals,” he added.
It was finally decided that the call for Bandh on 4th June be deferred and a seven days ultimatum be given to the Finance Minister to discuss the pending demands submitted during the pre budget and the fresh demands against the proposed hike in taxes and Toll Tax in the current budget proposal. A deadline of 7 days was decided and it was also decided that if the demands of the Chambers were not discussed before finalizing the current budget proposals then the Chambers shall not hold any further talks with the Finance Minister and take the path of a full-fledged agitation.
Office bearers of CCI present in the meeting included Sham Lal Langer, Sr. Vice President, Deepak Aggarwal, Jr. Vice President, Rahul Mahajan, Secretary, Ashu Gupta, Treasurer, T.S Wazir, Chairman Jammu and Kashmir Transport Association was also present in the meeting.
Meanwhile, a joint delegation of apex trade bodies the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCC&I), Kashmir Economic Alliance (KEA), Kashmir Traders and Manufacturers Federation (KTMF), Federation Chamber of Industries Kashmir (FCIK) led by their Presidents Mushtaq Ahmad Wani, Haji Mohammad Yasin Khan and Mohammad Ashraf Mir respectively had a detailed meeting with Minister of Finance, Haseeb Drabu regarding the recent hike in taxes in the Budget proposal for 2016-2017 and the strike call given by all trade bodies of J and K against this.
In the meeting with the Finance Minister, the trade and industrial bodies were assured of fair and just consideration of all issues raised by them.
In this context all the trade bodies including Jammu Chamber of Commerce have deferred the strike call of 4th June 2016 and there will be no Hartal on Saturday, the 4th of June 2016.