Tax waiver for Himachal's Covid-hit private bus, taxi operators

Tribune News Service

Mandi, December 24

Bowing down to the pressure of private bus operators, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur today announced waiver of the token tax, the special road tax (SRT) and the passenger tax, providing relief to the Covid-hit transport sector of the state.

Covid-hit sector

• Private transport operators had been demanding waiver of the token tax, the special road tax and the passenger tax, claiming that they had been hit by the pandemic.
• The tax waiver for private buses and taxis from April last year till November this year will cost the exchequer Rs54.45 cr and Rs62 cr, respectively.
• Earlier, private bus operators had threatened to refuse services for the PM’s December 27 event in Mandi.

The private bus and taxi operators had been demanding relaxation claiming that their business was badly hit due to the pandemic. In the wake of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Mandi on December 27, the private bus operators had threatened to refuse services to the state government’s Mandi celebration.

Addressing a press conference here, the CM said the state government had decided to do away with the token tax, the SRT and the passenger tax. “Private bus operators had been demanding it because their business had been badly hit due to Covid. So, we have decided to give waiver from April last year to November this year. It will cost the state government Rs 54.45 crore,” he said.

Waiving the taxes for the same duration for the taxi operators, who too had been demanding the same, would cost the state government Rs 36.67 crore, the Chief Minister said, adding that the state government had earlier given a relief of Rs 62 crore to the Covid-hit sector.

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