LUDHIANA: All clothing stores, traders, and textile dealers of Ludhiana went on a three-day long strike in support of the 72-hour 'bandh' call given by All-India Textile Association against levying of Goods and Services Tax (GST) on textiles and cloth, which were tax-free until now. Led by office-bearers and members of Cloth Merchants' Association Ludhiana (CMAL), and Punjab Wholesale and Retail Cloth Merchants' Association, hundreds of businessmen held a protest march in different areas of the city, including Ghumar Mandi and Bharat Nagar Chowk, and gave a memorandum to the deputy commissioner.Speaking on the issue, CMAL co-ordinator Sonu Nilibar said: "The fabrics, suits, and sarees sold by us pass through various processes of hand work and machine work, which are done by very small worksmen and their families who are mostly illiterate. Until now, there was no tax on textiles and cloth, but from 1 July, GST is going to be implemented on our products, and as a result, these poor people will also come under the jurisdiction of GST. But how can one expect them to keep accounts and file computerized returns every month? For these 'karigars' (worksmen) to keep up-to-date with GST laws and use computers in order to comply with the GST system is neither feasible not possible. Therefore, we pray to the government that a solution to this problem be found, in order to avert the irreparable loss, which will be caused after GST is imposed on us."According to CMAL president Sanjay Arora: "There is a huge number of small-time shopkeepers in our trade who have such small shops that they barely have a space to sit and keep all their goods. It is in no way possible for them to install computers in their shops just for the sake of filing tax. On top of this, there are traders who are in remote villages of Punjab and other states, who cater to the farmer-consumer. The government should take a compassionate view of the problems of these small-time businessmen, and keep textiles out of the GST's purview."The businessmen also hit out against the central government, and said that the provisions of penalties, prosecution, and imprisonment were very harsh for a trader under GST, and since there is always a possibility of making an error, it is wrong to fix harsh punishment for this. The traders also said the provisions would encourage the settling of personal vendetta by government officers, and give rise to inspector raj.

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